[Newsmaker] 17 foreigners deported for quarantine breaches

Seventeen foreigners have been deported for violating the COVID-19 self-quarantine rules and eight for refusing to be admitted to quarantine facilities upon entry, the government said Friday.

Additionally, 38 foreigners were sent back for not following the entry procedures mandated since the coronavirus outbreak started.

The government data on quarantine breaches shows that 531 people here broke quarantine orders between Feb. 19 and Wednesday -- 0.16 percent of the 324,160 people who have been ordered into self-isolation over potential COVID-19 exposure. Those figures include South Koreans as well as foreigners.

Of the violators, a total of 116 people have worn tracking wristbands, introduced in late April to deter quarantine breaches. Sixteen people currently wear the electric gadgets, which monitor their movements and their whereabouts. 

Some 38,046 people are under self-quarantine at the moment, 83.5 percent of whom are recent arrivals from overseas. The rest are have come into contact with confirmed patients.

As of Wednesday, the police were investigating 400 cases of quarantine breaches. Six people had been arrested for serious violations, while 241 had been referred to the prosecution with recommendations to indict.

By Ko Jun-tae (ko.juntae@heraldcorp.com)