Man charged after coughing on Wegmans employee, telling her she has coronavirus has history of pro-Trump, racist social media posts

The 50-year-old Freehold resident facing charges after coughing on a woman and telling her she now had coronavirus at a Manalapan Wegmans has a history of making pro-Trump comments and parroting Fox News talking points on social media.

George Falcone, who faces charges of making terroristic threats, harassment and obstruction of justice over the incident, has frequently shared tweets and posts made by conservative talking heads and once posted a meme suggesting Reps. Rashida Tlaib and Ilhan Omar were terrorists.

On Jan. 4, 2020, when the United States and Iran were at the brink of war following a strike that killed Iranian Gen. Qassim Suleimani, Falcone posted a meme on Facebook that contained images of Tlaib and Omar that said “I’m no genius, but maybe this is why Congress wasn’t notified of a secret attack on terrorists.”

Omar and Tlaib are the first and only Muslim women to be elected to Congress.

Separately, Falcone has posted in support of Trump’s statements that the United States will be back to business as usual by Easter.

“Peoples eyes are opening!! When we reopen around Easter the media will throw a complete fit. Don’t let them manipulate you. We have to get back to work. Protect the at risk and let’s pick up the pieces,” he said in the post.

According to the state attorney general’s office, Falcone is alleged to have intentionally coughed in the face of a Wegmans employee and told her she had COVID-19 after being asked to step away from an open display of prepared foods.

During a COVID-19 briefing Tuesday, Gov. Phil Murphy said Falcone, whom the governor called a “knucklehead,” refused to cooperate with police and refused to give them his name or license for more than 40 minutes.