Man jailed for biting cop, claiming he had coronavirus

LONDON: A man who claimed he had coronavirus then spat at one police officer and bit another has been jailed for 36 weeks.

Terry Simmons, 32, was seen banging on the front doors of homes in Cambridge, demanding to be let in and threatening people with violence, Cambridgeshire Police said. He claimed he had coronavirus as he barged his way into one house before he was forced back out by the people inside, the force said.

Simmons assaulted the police officers who arrested him on Tuesday last week, spitting at one as he was being put into the back of a van and biting the hand of another as he was booked into custody.

He admitted at Cambridge Magistrates’ Court on Thursday last week to two counts of assaulting an emergency worker, police said.

Simmons, of Malletts Road, Cambridge, also admitted using violence to secure entry and using threatening words to cause alarm or distress. He was jailed for 36 weeks and ordered to pay £125 in compensation, police said.

PC Sean Feline said: “Assaults on emergency workers who are simply trying to do their job are completely unacceptable, even more so during this difficult time we are all experiencing. Simmons’ behaviour left residents, who had been following Government advice, fearing for their safety and their health.”