Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

Woman loses job after being filmed coughing on people at Nebraska grocery store

The incident was filmed by a shopper at a store in Lincoln

Gustaf Kilander
Raleigh, NC
Sunday 12 September 2021 16:31 EDT
Comments
Woman is filmed coughing on fellow customers at grocery store in Nebraska

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

A woman has lost her job after being filmed intentionally coughing on fellow shoppers at a Nebraska grocery store following a bizarre altercation over Covid masks, according to reports.

The incident was filmed by a woman who was shopping with her child at a store in Lincoln earlier this month. The video shows a middle-aged, maskless blond woman walking up to them to ask why they were wearing masks.

“You guys are so cute,” she told the mother and child, and began to quiz them if they had been vaccinated.

When the woman filming asked why she wasn’t wearing a mask, the stranger replied: “I have allergies. Maybe I have a medical issue. I don’t need to wear a mask.”

The woman, who posted the video to Reddit under the name Jessabird, then said the stranger began to follow them around the store and started intentionally coughing on them.

“I then tried to continue my shopping but this lady followed me around the store. I told her she needs to keep her distance and that her coughing on me was assault. She laughed and kept saying: ‘Look at you, it’s so cute how scared you are,’” Jessabird added.

The woman also called the mother and child “sheep”. The video has racked up millions of views on social media platforms.

The woman, identified only as Jane, is from Scottsdale, Arizona, and subsequently lost her job, 12 News reported.

The woman’s employer SAP tweeted last week: “We have reviewed the incident and can confirm that the individual in question no longer works for SAP.”

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in