Two travelers were fined thousands of dollars after Transport Canada said they falsified their COVID-19 test results so they could fly home after a trip to Mexico.
The passengers were told to pay $10,000 and $7,000 respectively, Transport Canada said, for making “a false declaration about their health status.”
The two travelers “knowingly boarded a flight to Canada from Mexico on January 23, 2021, after having tested positive for COVID-19 only a few days before their flight,” said Transport Canada, which regulates road, rail, marine and air travel in that country.
The first traveler was ordered to pay $5,000 for allegedly presenting a false or misleading test and another $5,000 for knowingly boarding the aircraft with a false test. The second traveler was fined $2,000 for presenting false or misleading test results and another $5,000 for knowingly boarding the aircraft under false pretenses. Both had arrived in Montreal from an undisclosed location in Mexico.
As of Jan. 7, every traveler over the age of 5 is required to produce a negative test result from a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) or a reverse transcription loop-mediated isothermal amplification (RT-LAMP) test administered in the 72 hours before their flight’s departure.
The tests must be conducted in the flight’s country of origin before boarding the plane. Travelers arriving in Canada must also submit to a mandatory 14-day quarantine period.
Citing privacy concerns, the Canadian Public Health Agency would not comment on whether the passengers went through quarantine or if they were responsible for infecting others.
Source: CBC
