A defiant man who made a daring attempt to break free from a Melbourne quarantine hotel has vowed to refuse to pay a $19,000 fine, complaining he’s been ‘mistreated’.
In comical scenes, John-Lee Berridge, 24, made a bizarre bid for freedom on Boxing Day when he briefly ‘escaped’ from his room at the Tullamarine Holiday Inn.
Berridge managed to make it to the hotel car park, pushing past a security guard, before he was stopped by police and detained.
The interior designer, who was living in Maroubra, in Sydney’s east, for the past 12 months was adamant he was being held in the hotel unnecessarily.
John-Lee Berridge (pictured above) is facing a whopping fine of $19,000 for attempting to flee from hotel quarantine in Melbourne
The interior designer (pictured above being detained by police) said he was ‘mistreated’ when in hotel quarantine 
He told the Herald Sun he filled out the paperwork for his travel permit correctly before flying into Avalon Airport at 7pm last Monday.
The deadline for Victorians returning from NSW was midnight last Monday, December 21, before the border shut after a resurgence of coronavirus infections in Sydney.
He claims health officials were ‘reviewing his case’ and he was told he would be free to leave hotel quarantine by Christmas Day last Friday.
When that didn’t happen, Berridge decided to make a break for freedom.
‘Being misinformed built my anxiety up, that’s the reason why I decided to leave,’ he said. 
‘It just built up to too much I couldn’t take it any more. Once I get to that stage I can’t control myself.’
Berridge isn’t remorseful for his behaviour, stating he looked to flee after being ‘mistreated’.    
‘I was given false hope every single day,’ he said. ‘It just dragged on for days, could have told me my exemption wasn’t going to be accepted.’    
Berridge is facing a whopping $19,000 fine for the breach as well as $3,000 for his hotel quarantine cost – which he declared there is ‘no way’ he will pay.
He also plans to contest the breach in court.  
TRAVEL RESTRICTIONS FOR NSW RESIDENTS

• Western Australia – All NSW residents are banned from entering WA from 12am on Sunday, December 20. Anyone who enters the state from this date will be ‘sent back’, according to Premier Mark McGowan. 
• Victoria – Everyone who lives in or has visited the Greater Sydney area and the Central Coast since December 11 is banned from entering Victoria. Residents from other parts of New South Wales are allowed to enter but must apply for a permit
• Northern Territory – Anyone who enters NT from Greater Sydney, including the Blue Mountains, Illawarra and and the Central Coast, will need to undergo 14 days of supervised quarantine. 
• South Australia – People who have been in the Northern Beaches are banned. People who have been to Greater Sydney, including the Central Coast and Wollongong must isolate for two weeks.
• Queensland – Queensland will shut its borders to Greater Sydney residents from 1am on Monday. Locals returning to the Sunshine State will be allowed to enter until 1am on Tuesday but must isolate at home. A hard border for all NSW will be brought back in on Monday night.
• ACT – People from the Northern Beaches ‘should not travel’ to the ACT 
• Tasmania – Northern Beaches residents banned. All people from Greater Sydney must also quarantine upon entry.