Anti-Masker Who Coughed On Uber Driver To Turn Herself In To Police

An anti-masker who coughed on and attacked her Uber driver will turn herself in to police, according to her lawyers. Watch the incident here:

Footage emerged from the Uber driver which appears to show the mask-less woman arguing about where she and her friends are being dropped off.

It's claimed that, after he asked the three women to put masks on, one began to taunt him before she removed his mask and even coughed on him.

The incident took place on Sunday (7 March) in San Francisco's Bayview neighbourhood and yesterday (Thursday 11 March) officers from the Las Vegas Police Department apprehended 24-year-old Malaysia King (the woman in red) in connection with the incident.

In social media video posts following the incident, which appears to have been posted by one of the passengers, a woman cites her intention to use Lyft in future and says she will sue Uber.

She told the camera: "That's why I take Lyft. I'm going to sue Uber. They've seen the whole video so they know they dead ass wrong."

In a statement to LADbible, a spokesperson for Lyft later said: "Although this incident did not involve the Lyft platform, the unacceptable treatment of the driver in this video compelled us to permanently remove the rider from the Lyft community."

Arna Kimiai - who can be seen coughing on the driver - is yet to be arrested, but her lawyers have informed police she will hand herself in.

Nexus

Lt. Tracy McCray, who heads the San Francisco Police Department's robbery detail, said the 24-year-old's 'callous' behaviour would be met with justice.

She said: "We're glad to hear that Ms. Kimiai intends to do the right thing and turn herself in to the nearest law enforcement agency, and we hope it happens promptly.

"The behaviour captured on video in this incident showed a callous disregard for the safety and wellbeing of an essential service worker in the midst of a deadly pandemic.

"We take this conduct very seriously in San Francisco, and we're committed to ensuring that justice is done in this case."

The 32-year-old driver also said he was pepper sprayed by a passenger after they exited his vehicle.

A police statement reads: "The driver stopped and ended the ride a few minutes later when he realised one of the passengers was not wearing a mask in compliance with state and local public health orders for Covid-19.

"The driver said that he could not continue the fare unless all passengers were wearing their masks. An altercation ensued, and one of the passengers reached over the driver from the rear seat area and stole the driver's cellphone. The victim grabbed and eventually regained possession of his phone.

"The suspects then exited the car and another passenger reached into an open window and sprayed what is believed to be pepper spray into the vehicle towards the driver. The suspects fled the scene."

King was arrested on charges of assault with a caustic chemical, assault and battery, conspiracy, and violation of health and safety code.

Topics: Police, US News, crime, Face Mask, Uber

Jake Massey

Jake Massey is a journalist at LADbible. He graduated from Newcastle University, where he learnt a bit about media and a lot about living without heating. After spending a few years in Australia and New Zealand, Jake secured a role at an obscure radio station in Norwich, inadvertently becoming a real-life Alan Partridge in the process. From there, Jake became a reporter at the Eastern Daily Press. Jake enjoys playing football, listening to music and writing about himself in the third person.

@jakesmassey