US boyfriend flies to Germany and tries to sneak past border police to visit his girlfriend amid lockdown – but is caught and sent straight back to Washington

A US boyfriend flew to Germany and tried to sneak past border police to visit his girlfriend amid lockdown but was caught and sent straight back to Washington.

The 20-year-old American tried dressing up as a cleaner to cheat coronavirus border controls in Germany so he could see his girlfriend, police said today.

After arriving at Frankfurt airport from Washington on Sunday, he donned a high-visibility vest and picked up two bags of rubbish.

Pictured: People don face masks at border control in Frankfurt Airport as the coronavirus pandemic disrupts travel into Germany 

Pictured: A member of staff at Frankfurt Airport dons a face mask during the coronavirus crisis 

'He then tried to convince security staff that he was a cleaner and was supposed to empty the bins behind the security area,' federal police said in a statement.

However, his plan was foiled when a member of staff noticed he was not wearing a security pass and couldn't speak German.

He confessed at a police station that he was desperate to see his girlfriend and couldn't think of another way of entering the country.

Even if he had managed to reach the bins, the man would still have been in the airport's transit area, police said - meaning he would still have faced more border controls.

A man wearing a face mask is pictured passing through Frankfurt Airport in Germany 

After being questioned, the young romantic was sent back to Washington on Monday.

Germany has imposed tough border controls to try to stop the spread of COVID-19, which has infected more than 170,000 people in the country. 

Along with France, Spain and others, the country imposed travel restrictions on March 17.

Although the new rules were only meant to last for 30 days, the EU recommended an extension on April 15 and Germany continued to enforce restrictions. Under the rules, tourists are not allowed to travel to Germany because their travel is not deemed essential.