An American pilot was sentenced to four weeks in jail in Singapore for violating a mandatory 14-day quarantine. Brian Yeargan, 44, and two co-pilots arrived in the country on April 3 in a FedEx cargo plane. Because the three men had visited multiple countries experiencing coronavirus outbreaks, health officials told them they must stay quarantined in a hotel room for two weeks.
Two days later, when authorities went to check on the men, they noticed that Yeargan was not in his room. He was set to fly back home the next day and decided to take a train downtown so he could purchase face masks and a thermometer. His entire trip lasted about three hours, and he estimated there were about 1,000 people in the train station and between ten and 20 people in the four shops he visited. He was taken into custody and charged with violating the quarantine order.
Yeargan pleaded guilty to the charge and apologized for his actions.
"I'd like to humbly offer my apologies and say I have the highest regard for the Singapore people and its laws," Yeargan said, according to Channel News Asia.
He told the court that his wife was ill and he wanted to stock up on supplies that have been hard to find in the United States. Prosecutors asked the judge for a six- or eight-week sentence, arguing that Yeargan could have gone shopping after the quarantine order was lifted, or gotten help with purchasing the supplies from FedEx.
A judge decided to offer Yeargan a little leniency and sentenced him to four weeks in jail.
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