Barbados’ Prime Minister has warned Love Island star Zara Holland she will be held accountable for breaking the island’s Covid laws when she appears in court today.
In a TV broadcast, Mia Mottley said there had been ten recent breaches, six by tourists.
Ms Mottley said her government was prepared to take ‘necessary action’ against tourists, such as Holland and her boyfriend Elliott Love, for breaching the rules.
She said: ‘I believe that by far the majority of tourists are complying, but the handful who have chosen, literally to ignore our morals, ignore our customs, ignore our laws and guidelines, then you must equally be held accountable with the respect to what you have to face coming out of this country.’
Miss Holland was seen soaking up the sun yesterday at her luxury Barbados hotel ahead of her court date today.
The Love Island star, 25, is staying at the £350-a-night Hilton Hotel while her boyfriend Elliott Love is languishing in a mosquito-ridden medical facility a few miles away on the Caribbean island.
Zara Holland was seen enjoying the sun on the balcony at the Hilton Hotel in Barbados today
An onlooker said Miss Holland appeared ‘pensive’ as she looked at her phone in the Caribbean
The Love Island star will appear in court tomorrow in Bridgetown where she is accused of breaking the Caribbean island’s coronavirus laws by trying to catch a flight back to the UK
The Love Island star will appear in court tomorrow where she faces up to a year in prison and a fine for trying to flee the island with boyfriend Elliott Love after he tested positive for Covid-19
Wearing a white sports bra, the 25-year-old former beauty queen wandered to and from the balcony from the hotel room to which she has been confined since being questioned by police
The model (seen on holiday in Barbados in 2019) has issued a grovelling apology to the country after her arrest for trying to flee after boyfriend Elliott Love tested positive for the virus
The former Miss England and her partner Mr Love (pictured together) were ‘intercepted’ at the airport after police raided their hotel room and found that they had already left
Wearing a wore a white sports bra and a sarong, the model cut a lonely figure as she starred out at the sea from the 8th floor of the hotel.
Miss Holland has been charged with breaking Barbados’ coronavirus laws after trying to flee the island with Mr Love, 30, when he tested positive for coronavirus.
She will appear in court in Bridgetown later today where she faces up to a year in prison and an £18,000 fine.
An onlooker said: ‘Zara looked pensive and nervous as she sat on the balcony looking out to sea.
Mia Mottley, speaking last year at the UN Climate Action Summit, warned Miss Holland
‘She was looking intently at her phone. She appeared worried and seemed like she’s got the weight of the world on her shoulders.’
As the model awaits tomorrow’s hearing, she is holed up at one of the island’s most prestigious hotels, with two pools, three restaurants, a coffee bar, jewellery shop, its own palm-fronted white sand beach and a picturesque shady garden made from the ruins of a former colonial fort.
Meanwhile Mr Love is putting up with rather less salubrious conditions at the Paragon Isolation Centre, which has been condemned by former inmates for its squalid conditions.
One said: ‘The quarantine accommodations at Paragon have no air conditioning and very few windows. The mosquitos are relentless.
‘You are bunking with several others in a room and sharing a bathroom with dozens of others.
‘You will be fed but it is not conductive to working even though there is wifi.
‘Maybe you can handle minimal luxury for a short amount of time by it’s best you know the reality.’
With her streaked blonde hair pulled back, Zara still managed to catch some rays on a balmy 29 degrees day on the balcony eating fruit and talking endlessly on her mobile phone
Former Miss Great Britain Zara, from North Ferriby, East Yorkshire, has been summonsed to appear before island magistrates where she faces up to a year in prison and a heavy fine
Miss Holland is staying at the five-star beachfront Hilton Hotel (above) where she is confined to her room because she has been in close contact with Mr Elliott, who tested positive
The Hilton (pictured) is one of the finest hotels on the Caribbean island with two pools, three restaurants, a coffee bar, jewellery shop, its own palm-fronted white sand beach
Another added: ‘Think of it like a large hostel with no frills whatsoever.’
A source close to the police investigation told MailOnline: ‘Zara Holland is staying at the Hilton Hotel resort just outside Bridgetown.
‘She cannot leave the hotel.
‘Elliott is still at the Isolation Centre. It’s clean and safe but pretty basic.’
Miss Holland, a former Miss Great Britain, and her partner were detained at the airport as they tried to flee the Caribbean island rather than quarantine at a monitoring unit after he tested positive for Covid.
Miss Holland issued a grovelling apology to Barbados after what she called a ‘mix up’
They were held as the Barbados government brought in tough measures to suppress coronavirus transmission on the popular winter holiday destination.
When Mr Love tested positive for Covid on arrival last Sunday, the couple were given red wristbands and told to remain in their room at the £300-a-night Sugar Bay Hotel until they were taken to a quarantine centre on the north of the island.
Instead, they booked a British Airways flight, cut off their wristbands and took a taxi to the airport where, according to a local source, their names raised some red flags with airport officials because of their short turnaround time in the country. Police were then alerted.
They were arrested and taken to the military unit, basic facility where tourists quarantine until they can provide two negative tests. Mr Love remains at the hospital.
When Zara, from North Ferriby, East Yorkshire, was released, she returned to the Sugar Bay Hotel where she had been staying but was asked to leave by the manager and relocated to the Hilton.
‘She went back to the Sugar Bay hotel after she was released from quarantine but the manager told her she had to leave because she had brought shame on the hotel by breaching the Covid-19 protocol,’ added the source.
Meanwhile her boyfriend Mr Elliott is hold up at less appealing surroundings of the Paragon Isolation Centre, which has been condemned by former inmates for its squalid conditions
One former inmate described the Paragon Isolation Centre (pictured) as having no air conditioning and very few windows. They added: ‘The mosquitos are relentless.’
On Saturday she issued a grovelling apology to the islands government and its furious residents, claiming the couples actions were the result of a massive mix-up and misunderstanding.
She told island newspaper Barbados Today: ‘I want to apologise to the entire country of Barbados for what has been a massive mix-up and misunderstanding. I would never do anything to jeopardise an entire nation that I have nothing but love and respect for.