Add a 20-year old girl to the list of nearly 200 tourists who have been arrested in Hawaii this spring for failing to adhere to the state mandate requiring travelers to quarantine for 14 days.
Anne Salamanca arrived in Honolulu on July 6 and the Hawaii Tourism Authority learned she was out in public on July 10, dining in a restaurant and being videotaped dancing in a store.
The tourism authority informed attorney general special agents, who arrested Salamanca.
Originally from Alabama, Salamanca is a social media influencer in the Philippines who apologized to her followers - but, she claimed, she was told by Hawaiian law enforcement agents that she could leave quarantine if she tested negative for the coronavirus.
"None of my investigators would convey that information, as it is incorrect," Hawaii Attorney General Clare Connors said. "The fact Ms. Salamanca has so many followers makes her actions that much more dangerous and concerning. The spread of misinformation can have very severe consequences during an emergency situation like we are in now."
Salamanca was arrested and released on $2,000 bail.
The quarantine was mandated to help slow the spread of the virus, but not everyone has followed the rules. Nearly 200 tourists have been arrested, while others have been warned or cited.
"(Investigators) have contacted well over 27,000 travelers and have made more than 113,000 phone calls, texts and emails since the quarantine order went into effect at the end of March," the Hawaii COVID-19 Joint Information Center said in a statement.
The quarantined visitors reportedly receive calls as many as three times during their two-week-long quarantines. Nearly 7,145 people are still being tracked.
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