Man 'ESCAPES hotel quarantine in Queensland and goes on the run' after returning from a New South Wales coronavirus hot spot

  • A man 'is on the run' after escaping 14 day hotel quarantine in Toowoomba, QLD
  • Police said he was had recently returned from a hotspot in New South Wales 
  • Police will allege the 25-year-old left the hotel on his ninth day of quarantine
  • A police search is underway and he faces 'serious consequences' once located

A man is on the run after escaping from hotel quarantine in Queensland.

The man fled from a Toowoomba hotel, west of Brisbane, after being ordered to serve 14 days of mandatory quarantine after returning to the state from a New South Wales hot spot.

'I can advise police are currently searching for a man who breached mandatory hotel quarantine in Toowoomba,' Police Minister Mark Ryan told parliament on Wednesday, 7News reports. 

'Police will alleged he has left on his ninth day of quarantine.'

Mr Ryan said the 25-year-old had returned a negative COVID-19 test result and was not considered to be a high risk to the community. 

A man is on the run after allegedly escaping from hotel quarantine in Toowoomba. An airline passenger off a Qantas flight from Melbourne is pictured showing documents to be checked off by New South Wales police at Sydney International Airport on August 8

A man is on the run after allegedly escaping from hotel quarantine in Toowoomba. An airline passenger off a Qantas flight from Melbourne is pictured showing documents to be checked off by New South Wales police at Sydney International Airport on August 8

He said a police hunt is underway and the man will face serious consequences once located.

'Police will be very proactive in ensuring that they search for this man and apprehend him,' Mr Ryan told reporters.

'It is a very serious matter, to breach quarantine, and there will be serious consequences to this man as well.'

Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk last month laid down orders that anyone entering her state from Sydney 'hotspots', Liverpool, Fairfield, and Campbelltown, would have to enter 14-day mandatory quarantine at their own expense. 

The rules were tightened again on Saturday, with the border slamming shut to all of  New South Wales and the ACT, after Premier Palaszczuk declared them both hotspots. 

The measures came amid mounting fears that Victoria's horror second wave could spill into New South Wales.

As the high case count in Victoria starts to steady, COVID-19 infections have slightly climbed over the past few days, largely due to an outbreak at a school in Sydney's northwest.  

Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk shut her state's border off from all of New South Wales on Saturday. Commuters are pictured walking at Sydney's Central Station on Tuesday

Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk shut her state's border off from all of New South Wales on Saturday. Commuters are pictured walking at Sydney's Central Station on Tuesday

The number of cases at the Tangara School for Girls in Cherrybrook has now grown to 19, with many attributing to the 22 daily new cases on Tuesday- the highest NSW has seen in four months. 

On Wednesday, New South Wales recorded 18 new cases of coronavirus while Victoria endured its deadliest day, with 21 deaths and 410 new cases.  

In recent months, there have been several cases of people fleeing from mandatory hotel quarantine.

In July, flight attendant escaped from a Sydney hotel by allegedly convincing security guards she had to catch a plane in order to return to work.  

She was fined $1000 and returned to the hotel. 

Instagram influencer Sarah Josephine Liberty was busted breaking out of the Marriott Hotel on Pitt Street in Sydney via the fire escape on July 4 to have a cigarette.

Police later found her 150 metres away in Circular Quay and issued her with a $1000 fine before she was returned to her room.  

Instagram influencer Sarah Josephine Liberty was fined $1000 last month for escaping from hotel quarantine to have a cigarette

Instagram influencer Sarah Josephine Liberty was fined $1000 last month for escaping from hotel quarantine to have a cigarette 

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