GWANGJU, South Korea– A man who contracted COVID-19 was fined heavily Thursday for lying about his whereabouts during a contact tracing probe by health authorities.
A district court in Gwangju, 330 kilometers south of Seoul, sentenced the man in his early 60s to a fine of 10 million won (US$8,769) for violating the Infectious Disease Control and Prevention Act.
He was charged with giving false information about his contact and movements during an epidemiological investigation shortly after he was confirmed to be infected with the new coronavirus March 3.
On Feb. 27, health officials ordered him to self-isolate at home because he came into contact with a person who tested positive.
After being diagnosed with the virus, he told investigators that he had remained at home and only been in contact with three family members.
Authorities found later that he visited a temple and a restaurant in the nearby county of Hwasun on Feb. 27, a clan association office in Gwangju on Feb. 28 and a hospital and a pharmacy in the city March 2.
He was found to have come into contact with at least 16 people, including six relatives. Of them, five contracted COVID-19 later.
Source: Yonhap News Agency