‘Drunk’ British tourist ‘coughed on people and told them he had coronavirus’ in Spain

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‘Drunk’ British tourist, 43, is arrested ‘after coughing on people and telling them he had coronavirus’ in Mallorca

  • British man, 43, accosted restaurant diners in a posh neighbourhood of Palma 
  • The unmasked man was coughing on people and telling them he had coronavirus
  • Police arrested him and he has been given a test to see if he is actually infected 
  • If so, he could be charged with breaching health laws or causing bodily harm

By Natalia Penza For Mailonline

Published: | Updated:

A British tourist has been arrested after allegedly coughing on restaurant diners in a trendy area of the Majorcan capital Palma and telling them he had coronavirus.

The 43-year-old was detained around 11pm on Monday night after several diners called police to say he was wandering between tables and coughing on people.

When the restaurant manager told the mask-free man to leave he was also coughed on, according to police.

A 43-year-old British man was arrested in Palma (pictured) on Monday night after allegedly coughing on people and telling them he had coronavirus

Officers arrived in the Santa Catalina area – one of Palma’s most sought-after neighbourhoods filled with bars and cafes – and tried to arrest the man.

He tried to flee, and when officers caught him he resisted arrest and had to be restrained.

The man was taken to the police station where he was given a coronavirus test to see if he is actually infected with the illness.

If so, then he may be charged with violating health laws – and if it can be proved that he infected people, then he could be charged with causing bodily harm.

Masks have been mandatory in Mallorca since Monday with people facing fines of £90 for refusing to comply as authorities try to slow the spread of coronavirus (file image)

Masks have been mandatory in Mallorca since Monday with people facing fines of £90 for refusing to comply as authorities try to slow the spread of coronavirus (file image)

While Spain has been one of the hardest-hit countries with coronavirus, the Balearic Islands – Mallorca among them – have been spared the worst of the disease.

Nevertheless, masks were made mandatory in all public spaces on the islands from Monday in an attempt to stop the spread of the disease, amid fears that hotspots could be caused by tourists.

Once the global epicentre of the virus, Spain now has 256,000 infections and more than 28,000 deaths.