Two Melbourne men accused of falsifying documents to enter Western Australia to attend the AFL grand final on the weekend will stay behind bars until their next court date in two weeks.
Police allege Hayden Burbank, 49, and Mark Babbage, 39, flew into Perth from Darwin on 22 September, within 14 days after leaving Melbourne.
The two men appeared separately in the Perth Magistrates Court via audio link this morning.
On Wednesday it was revealed one of the men had produced an inconclusive COVID-19 test, while the other tested negative.
The man with the inconclusive result has since returned a negative test, WA Police Commissioner Chris Dawson said.
He said another man who also attended the grand final and returned to Victoria had been located there and also tested negative for COVID.
"All persons that we have either arrested or were investigating in terms of what we allege to be illegal attendance at the grand final due to alleged breaches of the Emergency Management Act directions, all of them have tested negative," he said.
Mr Burbank and Mr Babbage have been charged with failing to comply with Emergency Management Act directions after they allegedly entered WA within 14 days of being in Victoria.
Both men told the court they understood the charges.
Men claimed to have been in the Northern Territory
Footage from the grand final appeared to show Mr Burbank socialising with players in the Melbourne Demons change room at Perth Stadium after the game.
At the time of the grand final, WA deemed the state of Victoria as "high risk", meaning travellers needed a special exemption.
Mr Dawson said police would allege the men claimed to have been in the Northern Territory during the 14 days before entering WA, and were therefore granted G2G passes to enter the state.
Commissioner Dawson said the accusations — if proven — were a serious criminal offence.
The maximum penalty for breaching the Emergency Management Act is 12 months imprisonment and a $50,000 fine.
More than 60,000 people attended the grand final at Perth Stadium on Saturday evening.
The matter has been adjourned until 13 October, when they will reappear via video link.
Their lawyer did not apply for bail.
Third man remains in custody
Meanwhile a man accused of entering WA via South Australia and not declaring he had been in Victoria also remains behind bars after appearing in a Perth court this week.
Caleb Harold Cox, 32, also allegedly attended the AFL grand final.
He was remanded in custody until his next court appearance on October 8.
A fourth man who returned to Victoria is yet to face any charges.
