COVID-19 infected man flew from London to Spain’s Alicante and was allowed to take TAXI to home in Almeria after refusing to go to hospital

A PASSENGER who tested positive for COVID-19 upon arrival at Alicante was allowed to take a taxi to his home in Almeria, it has been revealed. 

The Nigerian flew into Alicante-Elche airport from the UK without the required PCR/LAMP test on Monday and so was ordered to be tested on site.

But following a positive result, public health bosses allowed the infected man to take a taxi to his residence, as he refused to go to hospital. 

According to La Informacion, the passenger had flown in from London, which is currently rife with the more contagious strain and under a nationwide lockdown. 

According to Policia Nacional, since December 22, some 55 people have been ordered to return to the UK after landing at Alicante-Elche without proof of residency. 

The infected man, who has residency in Spain, is believed to have been ordered to self-isolate at his Almeria property and will be fined for travelling without a negative test result.

The traveller is reported to have lied about having a negative PCR when he boarded the plane in the UK capital. 

He passed the passport desk but was stopped at the Foreign Health checkpoint, where he was forced to admit he was not carrying a negative test result. 

An antigen test was performed, which gave a positive result for COVID-19, leading airport workers to contact the regional health ministry for guidance. 

Sources close to the case said the passenger did not want to go to hospital, so authorities looked for a taxi driver who was willing to drive him home to Almeria, knowing he was infected. 

He was transferred in the early hours of Tuesday morning. 

Spain has introduced severe travel restrictions on arrivals from the UK ever since the discovery of the new strain late last year.

Experts say the UK variant is up to 70% more contagious, although it is not believed to be more deadly. 

Only residents or Spanish citizens can fly into Spain from Britain and they must produce a negative coronavirus test taken 72 hours before arriving. 

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