A meat thief who spat at a police officer and told him "I have coronavirus " has been jailed.
Oliver Cook, 35, was pinned to the ground and arrested outside a supermarket outside Iceland in Whitstable, Kent, at around 6.20pm on Sunday March 29 after he was seen trying to steal meat.
As Cook was searched, he spat at a police officer and laughed as he said: "I have coronavirus."
He was later charged with two counts of assaulting an emergency worker, theft and criminal damage.
Cook, of no fixed abode, admitted the charges at Medway Magistrates' Court on Tuesday 31 March and was jailed for a total of 120 days.
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Supermarket staff called police after Cook became abusive when challenged over shoplifting and damaging a shop display.
After spitting at one of the officers who searched him, Cook kicked another as he was put into a police van.
District Commander for Canterbury and Dover, Chief Inspector Elena Hall, said: "All emergency services and our whole community, which includes our officers and staff, are working extremely hard in challenging circumstances.
"We will not tolerate attacks of this kind. We will seek the prosecution of anyone who spits at or otherwise assaults any of our team, making sure the court know it is aggravated by any claims to have the coronavirus infection."
This comes as a senior policeman has warned suspects are using coronavirus as a weapon against officers.
There have been two separate incidents in which Essex Police officers were coughed at while responding to reports of crime on Saturday.
Three officers were kicked, coughed at and spat on while responding to reports of an assault in Leigh-on-Sea, the force said.
Officers were also coughed at and bitten while making an arrest in Ongar on the same day, police said.
Assistant chief constable Paul Wells said: "Unbelievably, this weekend we have seen suspects using the Covid-19 virus as a weapon against officers - who, in these incredibly challenging times, continue in their duty to keep the community safe.
"In just a 12-hour period, we had officers who had been kicked, spat and coughed at after responding to emergency calls from shop workers, who were also just doing their job."
