Deliberately coughing on emergency workers to be punishable by two years in jail

Prosecutors in the UK have warned that people who deliberately cough on emergency workers during the COVID-19 pandemic could be jailed for up to two years, according to the reporting from the Independent.

The Crown Prosecutions Service (CPS) has said that coughing will be charged as an assault on an emergency worker, or common assault if used against other key workers or the public.

This comes after numerous reports have emerged of people deliberately coughing on the likes of police and supermarket attendants and claiming to have coronavirus.

This nurse was in tears after panic buyers prevented her from buying food after her 48-hour shift:

Darren Rafferty, who hails from Dagenham, appeared in court for alleging to have coronavirus and coughing at Metropolitan Police officers who were apprehending him from another offense. The 45-year-old conceded to three counts of assaulting an emergency worker yesterday, and will be sentenced at Snaresbrook Crown Court on the 1st of April.

The Director of Public Prosecutions, Max Hill QC, said "Emergency workers are more essential than ever as society comes together to tackle the coronavirus pandemic."

“I am therefore appalled by reports of police officers and other frontline workers being deliberately coughed at by people claiming to have covid-19," he continued. "Let me be very clear: this is a crime and needs to stop. The CPS stands behind emergency and essential workers and will not hesitate to prosecute anybody who threatens them as they go about their vital duties."

Credit: 2379

John Apter, chair of the Police Federation of England and Wales, corroborated on BBC News on Tuesday: "We’ve certainly seen some examples of that where my colleagues are targeted by these vile creatures using coronavirus almost as a weapon, it defies belief. We need to deal with these idiots and deal with them robustly."

Assaults leveled specifically against emergency workers will reportedly be punishable by up to two years in prison, according to the publication, while common assault has a maximum sentence of six months.