Friday, 29 March, 2024
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Italian man charged over wearing fake arm to avoid COVID vaccine

An Italian man determined to obtain a health pass, by any means, now faces fraud charges after arriving for his COVID-19 vaccine wearing a fake arm.

The anti-vaxxer may have paid hundreds of euros for the silicone prosthetic, reports The Guardian. The bizarre episode at a vaccine hub in Biella, near Turin in the northern Piedmont region, came a week after Italy announced measures barring unvaccinated people from various social, cultural and sporting activities.

After completing the bureaucratic formalities, including signing a consent form in front of a doctor, the man, aged 50, sat down and lifted up the sleeve of his shirt as he prepared for a health worker to administer the jab.

The silicone looked similar to skin, but after touching the arm, the medic asked the man to remove his shirt. His plan foiled, the man then tried to persuade the health worker to turn a blind eye.

“The promptness and skill of the health worker ruined the plans of this person, who will now have to respond to the judiciary,” Alberto Cirio, the president of Piedmont, said in a joint statement with Luigi Icardi, the regional health councillor.

They said the case would “border on the ridiculous” were it not “for the fact that we are talking about a gesture of enormous gravity”.

Italy has seen a massive rise in the bookings for first-time jabs since announcing plans for the “super green pass”, which came into effect nationally from this past Monday (6 December) and requires people to prove they are vaccinated or have recovered from COVID-19 if they want to enter cinemas, theatres, gyms, nightclubs, ski-lifts and stadiums, as well as to be served indoors at bars and restaurants.

 

Italian man tries to dodge Covid vaccine wearing fake arm (Open access)

 

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