COVID-19 patient who had escaped was arrested on the market in Ondo where she sold ‘Okrika’



On Saturday evening a coronavirus patient was arrested on the iconic Oja-Oba market in Akure, the capital of Ondo State.

The woman, a female has been said to be a trader in the market selling second-hand clothes popularly known as 'okrika.'

It was found that the patient was diagnosed with the deadly disease in Imo State before she traveled down to Akure, the capital of the Ondo State, without being submitted for treatment.

Confirming the progress, Dr. Wahab Adegbenro, the state commissioner for health, clarified that the patient's escape prompted both the Imo and Ondo governments to mount surveillance for her.

The tracking eventually paid off when she was traced to Oja-Oba where she was eventually picked up.


She was caught where she was selling second-hand wares popularly called ‘okrika’ at the market.

Dr. Adegbenro announced that touch tracing had started with the patient's relatives, colleagues, and neighbors and encouraged all those who had transacted business with the woman to report for diagnosis.

The Health Commissioner, with the patient already at the State Infectious Disease Hospital, IDH, Igbatoro Lane, Akure, pointed out that reported cases of COVID-19 had risen to 41 as on Saturday.