ZARA Holland looked glum as she soaked up the sun from her hotel balcony ahead of tomorrow’s court appearance, where she could face a year in jail after breaching Barbados’ coronavirus laws.
The 25-year-old star seemed forlorn as she was seen for the first time since her arrest – gazing out to the ocean from behind the railings of the Hilton Barbados Resort.
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Wearing a white sports bra and a sarong in pictures exclusive to The Sun, the former beauty queen paced nervously around the balcony in full view of dozens of other holidaymakers.
One told us: “She looked very forlorn and clearly had a lot on her mind. This obviously wasn’t the dream New Year holiday she had envisaged.
“She spent a lot of time talking on her mobile and nibbling on fruit. It can’t be nice being locked up in a hotel room – but better than a jail cell.”
Zara has been confined to her hotel room since being questioned by the police for a “reckless breach of health protocols”.
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The Love Island star has been summoned to appear before island magistrates tomorrow [6th January] after allegedly trying to flee Barbados with her boyfriend Elliott Love after he tested positive for coronavirus.
Both were swabbed on arrival in Barbados and ordered to isolate at the £300-a-night beachfront Sugar Bay hotel – and when Elliott’s test came back positive, they made a run for it to avoid being quarantined.
After being collared by cops at the airport as they tried to catch a flight home, Elliott was taken the island’s Paragon military base, which has been converted into a Covid-19 quarantine centre, and Zara was ordered to isolate.
She was forced to check in to the £350-a-night Hilton after the owner of the Sugar Bay refused to allow her to return.
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Zara has been summonsed to appear before island magistrates accused of “contravening the emergency Covid-19 curfew directive” in that “while being a person in quarantine did leave her hotel premises without reasonable explanation”.
It’s believed Elliott will be questioned by police once he has recovered from coronavirus, and could also face charges.
At the weekend, The Sun revealed that Zara could be fined up to £18,000 and jailed for a year.
After cops found the hotel room that they were supposed to be isolating in empty, Zara and Elliott, 30, were arrested by police at the airport as they tried to flee the country despite his positive test result.
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It has now emerged the island has had a surge of 200 new cases of the virus in the past two days, with 33 linked to the airport from which the couple tried to leave.
Zara’s day in court comes just one week after a fellow tourist was jailed for six months for a similar breach.
Elliot has remained at the island’s quarantine centre since the arrest, with more than 3,500 people, mainly islanders, signing a petition demanding the pair be thrown in jail.
Zara previously told island newspaper Barbados Today: “I would never do anything to jeopardise an entire nation that I have nothing but love and respect for.”
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She said: “I firstly wish to apologise to the entire country of Barbados for what has been a massive mix up and misunderstanding during my most recent stay.”
Zara added: “I am currently working closely with the local authorities to rectify any issues on my part and will issue an update and full statement which I think is the only right thing to do to the Government and citizens of Barbados.”
The couple had been staying at the £300-a-night beachfront Sugar Bay resort.
