COVID-19: Five home-quarantine breakers in Labuan to face the music

LABUAN: Five individuals wearing COVID-19 quarantine wristbands, two of them foreign women, were arrested overnight here for breaching their 14-day home quarantine order.

Labuan police chief Supt. Muhamad Farid Ahmad said the first arrest involved a 50-year-old manager of a private company from mainland Sabah, who was found to have entered a government agency's premises here at about 9.30am on Tuesday.

"The man was spotted entering the premises over a personal matter by a security guard and the latter lodged a police report immediately.

"We arrested him the same day (Sept 29) at 7 pm at his house in Taman Perumahan Mutiara and took a statement from him for further investigation...we released him the same day on police bail," Muhamad Farid told Bernama.

He disclosed that the man, whose wife is a local, entered Labuan on Sept 27, and was issued a 14-day quarantine order until Oct 10 upon arrival at the Labuan Ro-Ro Ferry Terminal by a Labuan Health Department medical staff.

He added that the man was warned not to leave his house and that he may face court action once the investigation was completed.

The four others were arrested this morning (Wednesday).

The two women also attempted to enter a government agency office over travel documentation matters, while the remaining two are local contractors.

Muhamad Farid said the cases are being investigated under Section 269 of the Penal Code for the offence of committing a negligent act likely to spread infection of any disease dangerous to life, which carries a six-month jail term and/or fine upon conviction and under Section 22 (b) of the Prevention and Control of Infectious Diseases Act 1988.

-- BERNAMA