Canadian couple who jumped Covid vaccine queue could face prison time

'Even if the fine was $50,000, it's not enough,' says First Nation official

Rod and Ekaterina Baker posed as motel workers to get the jab ((Facebook))

A Canadian couple who travelled to a remote village to receive a coronavirus vaccine intended for vulnerable residents may be sent to prison for an alleged breach of public health rules.

Rod Baker, the former CEO of Great Canadian Gaming Corp, and his partner Ekaterina, reportedly chartered a private plane to Beaver Creek, in the Yukon territory near the Alaskan border.

The couple were said to have posed as motel workers at a mobile clinic and tricked authorities into receiving the jab, according to Yukon News.

The sparsely populated territory, which is home to many indigenous people, has a faster vaccination rate than in the rest of Canada, government data shows.

Mr Baker, 55, and his wife, 32, were found out after they asked to be taken straight to the airport after receiving the inoculation.

Great Canadian Gaming Corp, valued at $2bn (£1.6bn), said in a statement that it received the chief executive officer's resignation on Sunday but offered no details, stating that it did not comment on personnel matters.

Documents filed in the Yukon court registry show the pair were charged on Thursday with having failed to behave in a manner “consistent with (their) declaration.”

“We are deeply concerned by the actions of individuals who put our Elders and vulnerable people at risk to jump the line for selfish purposes,” White River First Nation Chief Angela Demit, leader of the local indigenous nation, wrote on Facebook.

Yukon's Community Services Minister John Streicker said in a statement he was “outraged” and found it “disturbing that people would choose to put fellow Canadians at risk in this manner.”

Mr Baker and his wife were also charged with failing to quarantine for 14 days on arrival in Yukon and were given a fine of $1,150 (£660).

The couple may face up to six months in prison as part of the declaration charge and could be fined an additional $500 (£364.48).

Janet Vander Meer, the First Nation's Covid-19 interagency team volunteer lead, told CBC on Wednesday that the couple need to face that punishment, saying: “We feel as the First Nation that there needs to be some prison time.

“There needs to be an actual sentence against this, not simply a fine — even if the fine was $50,000 (£36,432), it's not enough.”

Ms Vander Meer added that there was a “real risk of exposure to our community” and a “strong message of deterrence” needed to be sent out to make sure it does not happen again.

A spokesman for the Yukon government said it would implement new requirements for proving residency in the territory.