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Springfield man gives 'Covid hugs' to Walmart shoppers, faces terror charges for telling them they 'have virus'

According to Massachusetts state law, anyone communicating a threat either directly or indirectly, orally, in writing 'or by other means' can be charged with making terroristic threats
UPDATED AUG 23, 2020
(Facebook)
(Facebook)

SPRINGFIELD, MASSACHUSETTS: Springfield Police are seeking help in identifying a man who hugged customers at a Walmart store and told them they 'now have Covid'. The man has allegedly been going to a local Walmart and giving shoppers “COVID hugs”. The unidentified man reportedly hugged multiple customers at the store at around 7 p.m. on August 15, before telling them they were now infected with the coronavirus, the Springfield Police Department said. One of the victims, who police did not identify, is reportedly a cancer survivor and had never seen the suspect before.

In a Facebook post, the Springfield PD wrote, “This suspect took an item out of a victim's hands and then gave him a hug. He told the victim ‘Just giving you a COVID hug. You now have COVID’. The suspect then started laughing and walked away. The victim, who is a cancer survivor, had never seen the suspect before. This suspect had done this to other customers as well.”

The PD said, if anyone had any information about the person’s identity, they should contact the Detective Bureau (413-787-6355), or leave a private message on their Facebook page. The man was captured on surveillance footage. He was seen wearing a black face mask, a black t-shirt, and gray camouflage shorts. Per reports, the suspect is being sought for assault and battery, and making terroristic threats, police spokesman Ryan Walsh said, adding that it was not a laughing matter.

According to Massachusetts state law, anyone communicating a threat either directly or indirectly, orally, in writing “or by other means” can be charged with making terroristic threats. Even if the unknown man has not tested positive for COVID-19, by merely saying he has could constitute a threat. Walsh said it would be comparable to making a false bomb threat when there is not actually a bomb.

In May, a Florida man accused of coughing on and spitting at police officers while claiming to be infected with the coronavirus was indicted on a federal terrorism charge.
A federal grand jury in Tampa charged James Jamal Curry, 31, with perpetrating a biological weapon hoax. St. Petersburg police officers responded to a domestic violence call involving Curry on March 27. During his arrest, Curry declared that he was infected with COVID-19 and coughed on an officer's arm, police said.

Curry bonded out of jail the following day, and police were later called to the same residence where Curry had been arrested a day earlier. During his second arrest, Curry spat on an officer multiple times, hitting the inside of her mouth with blood-filled saliva, prosecutors said. Curry again claimed to have the coronavirus, laughed, and announced that he was spreading the virus around. Law enforcement obtained a warrant to test Curry for COVID-19, and the result was negative

In May, a 25-year-old man from Pontiac, Michigan, was jailed after spitting at them and saying he was infected with the COVID-19 virus, according to authorities. Per the Oakland County Sheriff’s Office deputies, the incident took place at the McLaren Oakland Hospital on North Perry Street. Deputies were dispatched to the hospital on a report that the patient had assaulted emergency room staff. The man had been taken to the hospital for medical treatment, but when staff began to treat him, he began arguing and began to assault them.

He was placed in restraints and put in an isolation room. When doctors began to evaluate him, he reportedly made verbal threats, including that he was infected with the COVID-19 virus and began to spit at a 42-year-old male physician and two male nursing staff, aged 29 and 32 years old.

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