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Singapore

Man jailed for breaching quarantine order given to him after colleague contracted COVID-19

Man jailed for breaching quarantine order given to him after colleague contracted COVID-19

File photo of the State Courts in Singapore. (Photo: CNA/Jeremy Long)

SINGAPORE: After his colleague contracted COVID-19, a man was ordered to go home and not report to work, instead he travelled around Singapore for eight consecutive days, claiming that he was very bored at home.

For repeatedly breaching his quarantine order, 65-year-old Soh Poh Tiong was jailed 12 weeks on Tuesday (Dec 8).

He pleaded guilty to three charges under the Infectious Diseases Act, with another five charges taken into consideration.

The court heard that Soh, a cleaner stationed at Northpoint City shopping mall, reported to work on May 10 this year.

His supervisor told him to go home and said Soh could not report to work until further notice, because a colleague had contracted COVID-19.

Instead of returning home, Soh travelled around Singapore because he was bored. Over the next few days, Ministry of Health officers tried to visit Soh to serve a home quarantine order on him, but could not as he was not home.

READ: Woman who repeatedly breached COVID-19 gathering rules fined S$4,000

They finally managed to serve the order on Soh on May 13 requiring him to be isolated at his residence until May 22, expressly informing him that he could not leave the house even if it was to buy food.

They told Soh to either use a mobile application to get his food or ask friends or family to help him. 

Soh acknowledged this and signed on the order accordingly.

However, he deliberately flouted the order by leaving his house daily from May 14 to May 21, claiming that he was very bored at home. He took walks around the neighbourhood or travelled to various locations, spending the bulk of his time during his quarantine period taking buses or trains.

Based on his EZ-Link records, Soh spent between two hours and 10 hours each day on buses in that period. He also went to public offices such as the Toa Payoh HDB Hub, interacting with staff members there to pay his bills, and went to multiple bus interchanges including those at Ang Mo Kio, Clementi and Tampines.

Travel records also show that he had taken multiple buses on May 16 between about 9am and 7pm, travelling to Ang Mo Kio, Clementi, Harbourfront, Tampines and Lorong Chuan.

READ: Woman gets 12 weeks' jail for breaching stay-home notice on pretext of visiting doctor

Deputy Public Prosecutor Kenneth Kee asked for at least 12 weeks' jail, saying that Soh had left his house for "protracted swathes of time" over eight consecutive days.

He spent the bulk of this on public transportation or visiting public spaces, while potentially exposing "countless others to the risk of infection", said Mr Kee.

"The accused’s irresponsible actions have undermined the efforts of others who had drastically curtailed their social lives during this trying time period to combat the spread of COVID-19," he added. 

"Notwithstanding being fully aware that he was a direct close contact of a colleague who had tested positive for COVID-19, the accused deliberately refused to abide by the terms of a home quarantine order that was served on him for the sole, inexplicable, and utterly irresponsible reason that he was merely bored."

However, the prosecutor acknowledged that Soh had worn a mask, and was cooperative during investigations, taking no steps to conceal his breaches or publicise them on social media.

For each charge of breaching a quarantine order, he could have been jailed for up to six months, fined up to S$10,000, or both.

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Source: CNA/ll(ta)

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