New Zealand: Covid-positive escapee had tried to flee hotel quarantine three times, officials say

Man's mother said she had called police on her son when he left home in Auckland after receiving his positive test result

A man who tested positive for Covid-19 before absconding from a quarantine facility in Auckland on Thursday had attempted to escape three times before he was successful, health officials report.

New Zealand police arrested the man at a south Auckland address on Thursday afternoon, roughly 10km from the Novotel Ibis hotel in Ellerslie, where he was quarantining. He had been in the community for at least 12 hours at the time of his arrest.