A passenger travelling through Dublin Airport was hit with a €500 fine after gardai found their essential worker letter to be false.
The person hoping to get on a plane to Tenerife provided a letter which said they were a key worker for an "electronic security systems provider".
However, gardai checked out the piece of paper and found it not to be legitimate, landing the chancer a hefty fine.
Gardai said in a Twitter post: "Gardaí at Dublin Airport checking 'reasonable excuse' for international travel were provided this letter, found to be false. €500 fine issued.
"'COVID-19 doesn’t switch-off so that people can attend parties, or go on holidays, or gather in large groups."
So far 375 fines have been issued at Dublin Airport to people for leaving the country for non-essential travel.
Key points from gardai today
€100 fine for non-essential cross-border travel in this jurisdiction comes into operation on Monday morning, February 8 2021
3,500 fines issued for non-essential travel including around 375 for non-essential journeys to airports/ports
301 fines for organising and attending a house party
Six people summoned to Court in March for failing to pay non-essential travel fine within 28 days of issue – facing potential penalty of at least €1,000 fine and/or a month in prison
People travelling to an airport or port to take a holiday abroad are now liable for a €500 fine each for undertaking a non-essential journey – going on a holiday abroad is not essential travel
Public advised to stay within the 5km limit when undertaking exercise this weekend.
