South Korean police said on Thursday (January 5, 2023) that they had found a Chinese passenger who absconded and was wanted after being tested positive for the new crown virus at the airport. The passenger tested positive for the new crown after arriving at Incheon Airport on Tuesday and absconded while being sent to a hotel for quarantine.

The police said that the officers found the Chinese man in his 40s at a hotel in Seoul that afternoon, and sent him to a facility for 7 days of quarantine in accordance with epidemic prevention regulations, after which he planned to conduct a criminal investigation against him.

According to South Korea's epidemic control regulations, if convicted, the Chinese tourist will face a year in prison or a fine of nearly 8,000 US dollars.

The incident underscores concern in South Korea and other countries about the health and safety threat posed by a possible surge in Chinese arrivals after Beijing abruptly lifted travel restrictions on the coronavirus outbreak.

On the day of the incident, South Korea announced the implementation of new crown testing for passengers from China. Of the 281 travelers from China that day, 26% tested positive for COVID-19. A day later, South Korean health authorities detected 31.5 percent of incoming Chinese travelers testing positive for COVID-19 on Wednesday.

The number of infections and deaths across China is believed to have risen sharply after the Chinese government abruptly ended its dynamic zeroing policy last month.

European Union health officials recommended that member states test for the new coronavirus for travelers from China after a meeting on Wednesday. Prior to this, EU member states such as Italy, France, and Spain had taken the lead in announcing relevant measures.

Countries including the US, Canada, Australia, and Japan have announced similar measures.

These countries said that an important reason for implementing these measures is that they do not know the real situation of the epidemic in China.

Beijing strongly opposes travel restrictions imposed by various countries and has threatened retaliation.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Mao Ning said on Thursday that since the outbreak of the new crown epidemic, China has been sharing relevant information with the international community in an open and transparent manner.

She also said that the current epidemic situation in China is controllable.