Chinese police have jailed a man for spreading rumors that a blast at a quake-damaged Japanese nuclear plant had contaminated Chinese waters.
The computer company worker in China's Zhejiang Province was sent to prison for 10 days and fined $76.13 for spreading fake information online, Reuters reported.
Surnamed Chen, the man had said that nuclear contamination was reaching waters off China's eastern Shandong Province.
Posted on March 15 under the handle "Old Fisherman," Chen's comments urged people to spread the word about the radiation to family and friends, stockpile salt, and not consume products from the sea for a year.
Chinese people rushed to buy salt last week after hearing unfounded rumors that iodine in salt could stop radiation sickness.
Although China has not found any abnormal signs of radiation, it is checking Japanese food imports for contamination.
According to a report, Chen told the police that he had come across the information on the Internet and "transmitted it to friends and family without thinking."
The report added that Chen had confessed to a "deep awareness of his mistake" which was "illegal and harmful to society."
TE/HRF