Enforcement action including "sending in bailiffs and seizure of assets" could be pursued as £9,000 in fines owed by a salon owner who breached Covid-19 lockdown rules remains unpaid.
Sinead Quinn, 30, of Bradford Road, Oakenshaw, opened her Quinn Blakey Hairdressing salon in November 2020 during the second national lockdown, when non-essential businesses were required to close.
At Kirklees Magistrates’ Court on August 13, 2021, six counts of failing to close her business due to Covid rules were found proven in her absence after being taken to court by Kirklees Council.
They were dated on November 9, 11, 21, 23, 26, and 27, when the UK was under a national lockdown.
She was fined £6,000 and ordered to pay a victim surcharge of £190 and costs of £2,869.92, for a total of £9,052.92, and was given until September 10, 2021, to pay the fine.
A spokesperson for Her Majesty's Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS) said this week: "The fines remain fully unpaid. Enforcement action is being pursued to seek what is owed."
If the fines remain unpaid, the spokesperson said that the courts could use other enforcement actions such "sending in bailiffs and seizure of assets".
"There are various avenues that can be pursued."
When contacted this week, a spokesperson from Kirklees Council said: "The Magistrates’ Courts are responsible for the collection and enforcement of any fines owed."
In November last year, Kirklees Council and HMCTS both confirmed that Quinn had not paid the fines and the enforcement action would now be taken.
At the time, HMCTS spokesperson said: "I can confirm that the fine remains unpaid and we have started enforcement action on the balance outstanding."
A Kirklees Council spokesperson also added: “The Magistrates’ Court is responsible for the collection of the fines owed and has confirmed to us that no payment has yet been received.”
Quinn did not attend the hearing at Kirklees Magistrates' Court in August last year, and magistrates were told she returned her court summons envelope to the court with a letter which said the contents remained “unseen”.
After the hearing in August, Kirklees Council dropped previous fines of £17,000 handed to Quinn for breaching Covid rules which she also refused to pay.
Quinn also claimed the organisation bringing the prosecution was “fictional” and that she “did not accept the role of defendant”, along with an inky thumb print. However, details in the letter revealed she would have read the summons.
Quinn had previously wrongly claimed that she did not consent to the regulations and claimed the laws were unlawful.
Last November she pinned a document quoting the Magna Carta in her window, which was proved to be false by legal experts.
Her actions last year also made her a popular figure among lockdown sceptics online.
After flouting lockdown rules and remaining open in November 2020, Kirklees Council, supported by West Yorkshire Police, started off by issuing the salon with a prohibition notice to close and she was hit with an initial Fixed Penalty Notice of £1,000.
Those fines quickly stacked up and and eventually reached a total of £27,000.
As the stand-off with the council continued, Quinn remained defiant.
She said: “I’m not breaking any laws. I’m standing under common law and I can open my business under common law.”
A video posted on Instagram at the time showed another visit from a council officer. In the video, Quinn said: “I don’t consent to any fines, so it’ll just be returned to sender.”
She has attempted to use Article 61 of the Magna Carta as justification for flouting the lockdown laws.
Kirklees Council took her to court at the end of November 2020, seeking a closure order for her premises.
In a hearing at Bradford and Keighley Magistrates Court, Rebecca Todd, chair of the bench, granted the order, saying Ms Quinn’s behaviour was “causing people distress at an already stressful and disturbing time”.
Tahir Hanif, prosecuting on behalf of Kirklees Council, said: “A court notice was served at the hairdressers. It was posted and placed on the shop in other prominent spots.
“On a number of occasions, the owner Sinead Quinn opened her premises for customers and when enforcement officers attended they observed customers being engaged in services offered and inside the shop."
The Telegraph & Argus attempted to contact Quinn, but received no response from her.
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