Police prosecute teen for breaking protocol

Police say they will prosecute a teenage soccer player after the health ministry said he violated health protocols and joined his teammates after quarantine but before a second PCR repeat test.

According to local media, a 16-year-old male footballer tested positive for the coronavirus on August 7 and was instructed to remain self-quarantined at home for two weeks. On August 21, at the end of the 14-day quarantine period, he took a health test that came back negative, indicating he had no traces of COVID-19.

But the health ministry says results of a second PCR test, which was mandatory 24 hours later for individuals in similar circumstances, came back positive.

Law enforcement authorities in Larnaca say they were notified by health ministry officials about the positive second follow-up test, with police spokesperson Christos Andreou saying the teen had already gone to soccer practice.

According to Andreou, the 16-year-old did not wait for the results of the second exam and went to football practice, where he came into contact with 45 teammates.

“It seems that the result of the second repeat test, which he took on August 24, came back positive,” Andreou said.

All his teammates and their six coaches were immediately instructed to self-isolate, while police opened a criminal investigation. Andreou said investigators are tasked with determining the circumstances under which the teenager broke the rules.

Knews attempted to reach health ministry officials but nobody was available for comment. There was no official police report about the incident while some of the details in the story could not be independently verified.

The police spokesperson said both the teenager as well as his parents bore responsibility over the events that took place.