At the weekend, the police took action in 142 instances on the basis of the government decree that entered into force last Monday due to the coronavirus epidemic, the deputy head of the duty centre of the Operational Group responsible for the fight against the pandemic said at an online press conference held on Monday.

Lt. Colonel Róbert Kiss said at the weekend 41 persons travelling on public transport did not or did not appropriately wear face masks, while 101 persons failed to observe the rules relating to the wearing of face masks in shops, at catering establishments or on the premises of other institutions. Since the entry into force of the new government decree last Monday, the police have taken action due to the violation of the rules relating to the wearing of face masks 405 times, including 337 cautions, 31 onsite fines and 37 prosecutions, the Lt. Colonel said.

Due to the violation of the rules relating to events involving music and dancing and the restricted opening hours of catering establishments, the police took action in five instances at the weekend. Last week, they took action due to the violation of these rules against 18 persons, including three cautions and 15 prosecutions.

He said they are continuously monitoring compliance with the rules relating to compulsory home quarantine; at the weekend, they conducted 36,174 onsite checks. In the last two days, 7,780 persons have been ordered to retire to compulsory home quarantine, including 2,150 persons upon entering the territory of the country. At present, there are 24,014 persons in compulsory home quarantine; 1,381 of them have downloaded the mobile telephone application that permits the electronic monitoring of compliance with the relevant restrictions.

He also reported that the police had instituted 469 criminal procedures in connection with the epidemic, including 140 due to scaremongering, 31 due to the threat of public endangerment, 138 due to fraud, and 28 due to the violation of disease control regulations. In these cases, 88 suspects have been questioned. Regarding border traffic, he said there is a three-hour wait in cargo traffic on the entry side at Csanádpalota and Röszke, and a two-hour wait at Beregsurány.

(Cabinet Office of the Prime Minister/MTI)