An unnamed Indonesian man wearing a niqab and pretending to be his own wife upon boarding a domestic flight almost made it all the way to his destination without being caught!
Discover our latest podcast
Imposted on board
Carrying his wife's passport and her negative COVID test result, the man proceeded to change into his regular clothes half way through the flight, prompting a stewardess to notice the sudden change of identity.
As it stands currently, a majority of airlines have restricted travel during the Eidh al-Adha holiday that began on 19 July. Police reported that the man was eventually detained after the plane landed and was tested immediately only to find out he was actually COVID-positive.
He has since been ordered to self-isolate at home and will be prosecuted as soon as his mandatory quarantine is completed.
The incident comes amid the dangerous upsurge of coronavirus cases in South East Asia, causing strict restrictions on travel in Indonesia—today considered the epicentre of the virus in the continent.
Coronavirus in Indonesia
The country is currently battling a staggering rise in infections with daily records showing more than 50,000 tests coming back positive in the last few days. As a result, hospitals are reaching critical overcapacity as well as an overwhelming lack of resources such as oxygen.
Since the beginning of the pandemic emerged a year and a half ago, Indonesia has seen three million people infected with more than 72,000 dead.
The high amount of deaths can be attributed to the slow vaccination rollout as well as the onset of the super-spreading Delta variant.
