Northern Territory Police have charged a woman after she allegedly refused to wear a mask and then spat in the face of a hospitality worker in Darwin’s CBD.

The 22-year-old woman was at a licensed premises in Mitchell Street in the early hours of Sunday morning without a mask. A security guard asked her to don her mask and she allegedly refused. On being removed from the premises, an altercation ensued and the woman allegedly spat in a staff member’s face.

Police arrived shortly after and took the woman into custody.

She has been charged with:

• 2 x Assault a worker not suffer harm
• Contravene emergency declaration – person
• Cough, spit or expectorate on/at worker

She has been bailed to appear in Darwin Local Court on 26 July 2021.

Incident Controller Shaun Gill said, “No worker deserves to be treated like this. Not only are we coming out of lockdown and need to be especially mindful of the Chief Health Officer Directions, spitting at someone is disgusting at any time and this incident cannot be taken lightly.

“Northern Territory Police will continue to enforce the Chief Health Officer Directions to ensure the safety of the community.”