A man was sentenced to 10 weeks in jail on Friday after being found guilty coughing in the faces of two police officers and telling them he was infected with coronavirus.

The 23-year-old was pulled over on the Oegstgeesterweg in Leiden on Thursday evening by police who suspected him of driving under the influence of alcohol.

He appeared at the district court in The Hague on Friday under fast track legal proceedings and was charged with assault, making threats, causing injury and verbal abuse.

On Sunday a man in Den Bosch was arrested for spitting at people queuing outside a ‘coffeeshop’ – a cafe licensed to sell cannabis on the premises – after the government announced the outlets’ imminent closure. He is alleged to have shouted: ‘I’ve got corona’. He is due to appear in court next Wednesday.

He was also ordered to pay each police officer €350 in damages.