Six more prisoners at Penang Remand Prison down with Covid-19

 

GEORGE TOWN: Six more prisoners at the Penang Remand Prison have tested positive for Covid-19.

Prisons Department director-general Datuk Seri Zulkifli Omar said six more cases had been reported, bringing the total to seven cases as of Tuesday (Oct 6).

"The number of Covid-19 positive cases in prisons nationwide is now at 1,126 as of Tuesday.

“The spread among detainees began in Tawau prison when an inmate from Lahad Datu tested positive for Covid-19 on Sept 2.

“The next cluster was detected at the Alor Setar prison on Sept 29, ” he said in a statement.

The government has placed the Alor Setar prison under targeted enhanced movement control order (MCO) for 14 days following a rise in Covid-19 infections there.

Zulkifli said the department would follow the current standard operating procedure set by the Health Ministry, including to treat, quarantine and curb the spread of the virus related to its staff and the protection of inmates nationwide.

On Tuesday, The Star reported that an 85-year-old male prisoner, who died on Monday (Oct 5), tested positive for Covid-19 after his death.

A prison warden found him unconscious in his cell at around 7am on Monday, and he was taken to the Penang Hospital’s emergency department.

He was declared dead at 7.50am and sent to the Penang Hospital’s forensic department.

He had a history of being treated for tuberculosis and HIV at the Penang Hospital. - Star