Top Garda warns ‘Corona challenge’ will lead to assault charges

From this week’s Galway City Tribune: Galway’s Garda Chief has warned that the full rigours of the law – including potential jail terms – will be brought to bear on anyone who engages in the practice of ‘coughing or spitting into the face’ of someone during the current coronavirus crisis.

Chief Superintendent Tom Curley told the Galway City Tribune that there had been reports of such behaviour from different parts of the country as well as individuals spitting at people.

“As well as being the most despicable of behaviour, it comes quite clearly under public order offences, as well as Section 2 and Section 3 assaults, and endangerment. I can guarantee that we will vigorously pursue the culprits,” he said.

Such incidents, known as the ‘corona challenge’ are also being filmed and posted on the TikTok social media app – they sometimes involve a group of teenagers coughing into the face of an older person and then telling this person that “they’ve got the corona”.

Chief Supt Curley said: “We have extra resources at our disposal . . . we have more Gardaí out there in the community . . . and I can assure the general public that anyone engaging in this kind of truly awful behaviour will be pursued.”
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