Woman Accused of Intentionally Coughing on Baby Identified as School Employee

Woman Accused of Intentionally Coughing on Baby Identified as School Employee
The female suspect who allegedly coughed in the face of a baby in San Jose, Calif., in a file photo. (San Jose Police Department)
Zachary Stieber
6/25/2020
Updated:
6/25/2020
A woman who police said coughed on a baby on purpose was identified as an employee of a local school.

Oak Grove School Superintendent Jose Manzo said district officials “are aware of an incident allegedly involving one of our employees who was videotaped coughing on a baby at a local eatery.”

The woman is currently not working and not providing any services to students as the San Jose Police Department investigates what happened, Manzo said in a statement.

District officials said they’re cooperating with law enforcement.

The school employee wasn’t named.

No suspect has been arrested as of Thursday, a San Jose Police Department spokesman told The Epoch Times.

“We are following up on leads, but no one has been arrested. We can’t release names of suspects until they are wanted by an arrest warrant, booked into jail, or issued a criminal citation,” he said in an email.

San Jose Police said an older female removed her mask and coughed in the face of a 1-year-old child.

“The preliminary investigation revealed the suspect was upset the female was not maintaining proper social distancing, so the suspect removed her face mask, got close to the baby’s face, and coughed 2-3 times. The suspect left the scene and has not been identified or apprehended,” the city’s police department said in a statement Tuesday.

The incident took place at a Yogurtland.

Police officials released video footage of the suspect that appears to show her coughing on the child.

The victim wasn’t identified by police.

Mireya Mora said she was the mother of the baby who was coughed on.

“I can’t believe that someone has the heart to do this—and why?” she told a local broadcaster. “My child did nothing wrong. I’m pretty sure he’s going to be traumatized from now on.”

Mora disputed that she wasn’t maintaining social distancing, which refers to public health guidance that people stay 6 feet or more apart from each other.

Anyone with information was asked to contact the police at 408-277-4161 or through Crime Stoppers.