Man punished for using 'PCR test surrogate'

A 32-year-old man has been punished for having another person take a COVID-19 polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test for him, Shanghai police said on Tuesday.

The man surnamed Yu, a resident of suburban Jiading District, works as an online taxi driver.

Angry that the constant PCR tests cost him time at work, Yu had a neighbor, a 39-year-old man surnamed He, take a test for him last Friday in Anting Town, police revealed.

Surveillance cameras around the testing site caught He queuing up twice for nucleic acid tests within a short time that afternoon, wearing the same clothes.

He stood the test for Yu by using a screenshot of the latter's PCR code, according to police, who said they they discovered the cheating on their own.

Both Yu and He were given a fine for failing to abide by orders from the municipal government in times of emergency.

They both tested negative for COVID-19, police said.