Spain: Man from Mallorca arrested for infecting 22 people with Covid

A man from Mallorca in Spain has been arrested on suspicion of assault for infecting 22 people with Covid. The police said on Saturday that the man continued going to work and gym despite the signs that he had Covid infection.

Police on the Spanish island began investigating at the end of January after an outbreak in the town of Manacor, following reports an employee had "become infected but hidden his illness", a statement said.

The man showed symptoms of infection which concerned his colleagues but he did not want to go home.

At the end of the day, he went for a PCR test but didn't wait for the result, returning the next day to his job and also attending his local gym. 

At work, both the manager and staff insisted he go home because he could be infecting everyone, later telling police he had a temperature "of over 40 degrees Celsius" -- more than 104 degrees Fahrenheit.

But he ignored them and spent the day walking around his workplace, deliberately lowering his mask when he coughed and taunting them by saying: "I'm going to infect you all with coronavirus," police said. 

When his PCR result came through at the end of the day, it was positive, causing alarm among his colleagues who were also tested. 

Five of them also tested positive, and they in turn infected several of their family members, including three one-year-old babies. 

At the gym, three people who had been in direct contact with him were also infected and passed on the virus to family members. 

Police said his actions resulted in a total of 22 infections, although none required hospital treatment, with the man arrested on suspicion of assault. 

(With inputs from agencies)