5 in police custody for ‘spreading rumour on coronavirus outbreak’

Five persons have been taken to police custody to be quizzed in connection with spreading rumours on coronavirus outbreak in the country.

Law enforcers detained them from different areas of Dhaka on Thursday night and they will be quizzed over the allegation, said Najmul Islam, additional deputy commissioner of Cyber Security and Crime division of Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP).

The five detainees are connected with two Facebook accounts and three online news portals, the official said.

Earlier, several online portals carried news spreading rumours that "the novel coronavirus has spread in Bangladesh and two persons have died after being infected with the virus". There has not been any authentic information regarding anyone being infected with or dead from coronavirus outbreak.

"The government and the people of the country are sincerely working to prevent the outbreak of the disease", Najmul Islam said.

Being over-enthusiastic, many people are sharing fake news reports and posts in this regard in social media sites. Those who are spreading rumour on coronavirus will be brought to the book under Digital Security Act, the official added.