A man in New Zealand has been sentenced to three months in jail after spitting at police, according to a New Zealand Police statement.
The man pleaded guilty to aggravated assault against police in a hearing on Thursday at New Plymouth District Court on the country’s North Island.
Although police didn’t explicitly say the incident was coronavirus-related, they eluded to the current outbreak in their statement.
“In the current environment we have identified spitting as an escalating risk to both police officers and the community and it will not be tolerated,” the statement said.
In New Zealand, a person could face 14 years in jail if they spit or cough on another person and infect them with a disease.
In a related development, on Wednesday, police said two teenagers were being spoken to by police when one said that he had Covid-19, and spat in the face of the officer.
“As a result of this assault, the officer will no longer be able to perform his duties within the community and will be in self-isolation for 14 days from his family,” police said in a statement.
“Such behaviour is extremely concerning and dangerous. Police staff should not be targeted in such a way and we need to ensure the community is safe from such behaviour”, the statement said.
New Zealand has 1,239 confirmed and probable coronavirus cases, including one death.
