Romanians face up to 15 years in jail if they do not comply with restrictions related to the coronavirus and their behaviour leads to a death, the government said in a decree taking immediate effect Thursday.
Bucharest, which has to date listed 227 virus cases and quarantined 3,800 people, also urged nationals based abroad not to return given the mass tightening of restrictions around Europe.
Romanians will face up to three years in jail if they do not comply with legislation, but no health consequences arise from it, or five years if their actions result in a new case of infection.
“We cannot accept irresponsible people wandering around freely and making others sick,” said Prime Minister Ludovic Orban.
President Klaus Iohannis earlier urged “firmly but with sadness” some four million Romanians living abroad to stay put as the Easter period approached.
