A criminal case has been opened against a top infectious diseases specialist who tested positive for coronavirus after violating mandatory quarantine and spreading the disease in her region, a regional branch of the Investigative Committee, Russia’s top law-enforcement body, said Monday.
A statement released by committee said the agency’s Stavropol branch had charged a professor of infectious diseases at the Stavropol Medical Institute for allegedly failing to disclose a trip abroad to her employers and evading a mandatory two-week quarantine upon return to Russia.
According to the statement, the woman — who also holds a position as a top infectious diseases consultant with the local branch of the Ministry of Health — had vacationed in Spain between March 6 and 9, and allegedly failed to disclose her travels.
The woman continued her usual way of life — gave lectures at the university, participated in a conference, visited other institutions and departments, and a few days later, on March 17, due to health deterioration, was hospitalized and diagnosed with coronavirus infection COVID-19,” the Investigative Committee alleged.
Criminal proceedings have been launched based on “negligence” and “concealment of information that endangers the life or health of people,” both articles of Russia’s criminal code, the Investigative Committee added.
Vladimir Vladimirov, the regional governor, said authorities were working to establish the suspect’s contacts in the past days, and were testing over 1,200 people for coronavirus. In 11 cases, the preliminary tests returned positive, Vladimirov said in an Instagram post.
Violation of quarantine is punishable by law in Russia by up to five years in prison if the violation leads to a coronavirus-related death. The Investigative Committee did not publish the name of the woman alleged to have violated quarantine, a matter of practice in the agency’s public statements.