It looks like an Australian pizza worker might escape punishment - despite telling a lie that caused 1.8 million people in the south of the country to be put into a strict lockdown unnecessarily.
An unnamed male had hidden the fact that he was a worker at Woodville Pizza Bar in Adelaide, south Australia, instead claiming to officials that he had picked up coronavirus as a result of picking up a pizza as a customer.
South Australian premier Steven Marshall called for the lockdown off the back of the story, with health officials suspecting that the man must have caught the virus from brief exposure - and therefore the strain must be highly contagious.
His story also suggested that a large number of other customers would have been infected through casual contact at the shop as well.
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In Australia, lockdown has meant that residents have to stay at home with no exemption for outdoor exercise, while most businesses have to close instantly.
It's a tough approach but, combined with the country's relative isolation from the rest of the world, it's paid dividends and Australia has largely kept the virus in check throughout 2020.
It turns out, however, that he had been in close contact with the shop's security guard, who was among an outbreak of 36 positive cases in Adelaide.
Marshall subsequently called off the lockdown three days early, but it appears there'll be no punishment for the man, despite nearly two million people wrongly being forced to stay home.
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That is because, according to the state's police commissioner, Grant Stevens, there is 'no penalty associated with telling lies'.
Stevens added: "We were operating on a premise that this person had simply gone to a pizza shop, [with] very short exposure and walked away having contracted the virus.
"We now know they are a very close contact of another person who has been confirmed as being positive with Covid. It has changed the dynamic substantially."
Earlier on today, having called an end to the lockdown, Marshall told reporters: "To say I am fuming about the actions of this individual is an absolute understatement.
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"This selfish actions of this individual have put our whole state in a very difficult situation.
"Their story didn't add up. We pursued them. We now know that they lied.
"Had this person been truthful to the contact tracing teams, we would not have gone into a six-day lockdown."
Thankfully for the people of Adelaide, the 36 new cases have proven to be nothing more than a temporary spike, and with only three new cases found on Friday (20 November), the state is continuing to slowly relax restrictions.
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Among those, gyms will be allowed to reopen while hospitality venues and services including funerals and religious ceremonies will also be allowed to recommence, albeit with attendance caps in place.
Featured Image Credit: Getty