The Government today strongly appealed to the public to strictly follow compulsory quarantine requirements and report those suspected of breaching quarantine orders.

The Government said that since the compulsory quarantine requirement for persons arriving at Hong Kong from foreign places was implemented on March 19, a total of 24 people have been sent to quarantine centres for breaching quarantine orders.

Following reports from the public today and detection via electronic monitoring system, Police investigated and found 10 people left their dwelling places without permission and were subsequently sent to quarantine centres.

The Government thanked those who provided information that led to the seizure of seven such people yesterday.

It encouraged the public to report those suspected of breaching quarantine orders via the e-Report Centre, report rooms of police stations or the "1823 Citizen's Easy Link" hotline.

The Department of Health (DH) and Police will conduct follow-up investigations to collect more evidence for the Department of Justice to consider prosecution.

Regarding online rumours that the public should call the DH hotline 2125 1122 to report quarantine breaches, the Government clarified that the hotline is for symptomatic people to contact the department for help and should not be used for reporting breaches.

The Government emphasised that strict observance of the quarantine requirement is necessary to protect the health of those under quarantine and others.

The measure is of utmost importance to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in the community, it said, adding that leaving dwelling places without permission is a criminal offence that is subject to a maximum of six months’ imprisonment and a fine of $25,000.