Woman Intentionally Coughs On Customer At Queens Bagel Shop

The woman intentionally coughed on another customer after she was asked to wear a mask

A New York woman caught on video intentionally coughing on another customer after being asked to wear a mask quickly went viral. Now, the woman she assaulted is speaking out about the horrible experience.

Allison Goodbaum spoke to Good Morning America about what happened at the New York City Bagel & Coffee House in Astoria on June 6. Goodbaum said she saw the woman coughing while waiting for her order and decided to say something to the staff. “I didn’t say anything to her,” Goodbaum said. “It’s not my place to say anything to her directly, though I told the person who was working there, I told the staff that I believe they should enforce the mask rule.”

Apparently, the woman overheard Goodbaum and decided to take matters into her own hands, yelling at her, “Come at me to my face,” and then coughing on her before walking back to grab her order. According to Goodbaum, the woman said she had “good antibodies” and didn’t need to wear a mask.

“When she came to me and coughed on me, I felt her breath and I felt it, you know, on your face kind of like when someone sneezes and they’re very close to you,” she said. “So that part was pretty jarring… I was shocked that she came toward me like that, and that that was her initial reaction was to cough on me. And I was really scared because I was thinking, did she actually infect me?”

A New York State mandate requires all New Yorkers to wear a face covering “when outside of their home if they cannot maintain at least 6 feet from others.”

Goodbaum has since filed a police report and is doing a voluntary quarantine until her COVID-19 test results come in, which is unfortunate given she has been helping her elderly parents. “I go grocery shopping for them. My father needs support getting around. … But it definitely has been an emotional week,” Goodbaum told CBS2 New York.

“My number one message is obviously just wear masks when you’re inside,” Goodbaum said. “Please, just take this seriously. And again, it’s just uncharted territory for all of us. And we’re going into all of these phases, are reopening at different times across the country. And I think that, you know, nobody wants to backtrack. Nobody wants to take one big step back. And I think the more that these things happen, there’s a greater likelihood that that could happen. It’s not just about you. It’s about keeping your community safe.”