COVID-19-positive man disguised himself as wife to fly: report

An Indonesian man is facing arrest after giving himself up in an incident in which he dressed as his wife in order to board a domestic flight.

The man, who has only been identified by the initials “DW,” reportedly disguised himself as his wife by donning a niqab in an attempt to take a flight from Jakarta to Ternate after he tested positive for COVID-19. His wife had tested negative for the virus, according to CNN.

DW reportedly used his wife’s ID and her negative coronavirus test results in order to gain access to the plane at Jakarta’s Halim Perdana Kusuma Airport.

Domestic travelers in Indonesia are required to present proof of a negative COVID-19 test to fly.

It wasn’t until the man had already boarded the flight and decided to change out of the niqab and into men’s clothing that he alerted a flight attendant that he did not belong.

The flight attendant then notified airport authorities in Ternate and they detained DW once he exited the plane upon its arrival, CNN reported.

A health officer reportedly tested DW immediately after he was detained and his test came back positive for COVID-19.

“[T]he airport immediately contacted the Ternate City Covid-19 Handling Task Force team to evacuate the man while wearing personal protective equipment (PPE), and then taking him in an ambulance to his house [in Ternate City] to self-isolate, where he will be supervised by Task Force officers,” Ternate COVID-19 Task Force Operational Head Muhammad Arif Gani told reporters, according to CNN.

Local police confirmed that once DW completes his period of isolation that they intend to prosecute him for his actions, the news outlet noted.

Indonesia made headlines earlier this month after the country reported a shortage of oxygen amid a surge of coronavirus cases.

The country has reported 2,983,830 coronavirus cases and 77,583 deaths connected to the virus since the start of the pandemic, according to Johns Hopkins.