Cops charge prankster who 'corona-coughed' on aged officer and had it filmed

Police have charged an Australian moron who coughed on a copper in Coffs Harbour and claimed he was suffering from COVID-19.

It gets worse: the woman police officer was 71 years old, and therefore rather at risk if the coronavirus-infection claim was true. And worse still: while the 21-year-old cretin coughed, a friend filmed the incident, presumably to use on social media.

The coughing clown was taken to a station, arrested, and charged with stalking with intent to cause fear or physical harm, and resisting or hindering a police officer in the execution of duty.

As New South Wales Police explained: "While inquiries were being made regarding the man's claims, the police station was closed, and the necessary isolation protocols were put in place."

Which is just what's needed at this time.

He was found to be clear of the virus, and granted strict conditional bail. He will appear in court in May.

The idiocy took place in Coffs Harbour, a regional city 550km north of Sydney which is home to around 75,000 people, on Tuesday afternoon.

Sadly, the prank is just one of many dubious Australian responses to coronavirus.

Last Friday, Sydney experienced a very warm day. So thousands went to the beach and ignored social distancing recommendations. Most beaches are now closed.

Then the internet portal that newly unemployed people in this ongoing pandemic use to register for benefits crashed, and the relevant government minister falsely claimed it had been the victim of a distributed denial-of-service attack before reversing that stance within two hours. The real story was a failure to anticipate an utterly predictable flood of traffic.

And the nation's government today revised its restrictions on having a haircut. Previously patrons in need of a trim were limited to 30-minute visits. Now Australians can linger in hair salons long enough to curl up and dye, provided they do so while social distancing. ®