A Nigerian national who was found to be carrying monkeypox in Thailand and fled the country has been arrested in Cambodia.
Cambodian authorities arrested the man yesterday evening in Chamkarmon District, Phnom Penh, Khmer Times reports. The 27-year-old man, identified as Osmond Chihazirim Nzerem, has been handed over to the Ministry of Health for further treatment and investigation.
Unconfirmed reports and sightings spread across Cambodia yesterday, with the governors of several provinces placed on high alert.
The man was recognized as Thailand’s first case of monkeypox, and has now become the first recorded case in Cambodia as well.
The man arrived in Thailand from Nigeria on 21 July, and had been staying at a condominium in Patong, Phuket.
He showed symptoms of the virus including a cough, fever, and skin lesions. He was told to self-isolate in a private apartment, but he instead checked into a hotel and failed to turn up at the hospital where he was meant to go for treatment.
The monkeypox outbreak was declared a global health emergency by the World Health Organization yesterday. The classification is the highest alert the WHO can issue.
