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WILKES-BARRE &mdash; A preliminary hearing for a Hanover Township woman on allegations she intentionally spat and coughed on food inside a Hanover Township Gerrity&rsquo;s Supermarket, causing an estimated $35,000 in ruined merchandise, was continued on Wednesday.
				Margaret Ann Cirko, 35, of Tomko Road, was arrested by Hanover Township police hours after she allegedly coughed and spat on numerous food items inside the supermarket on Sans Souci Parkway on March 25.
				Police allege Cirko yelled, &ldquo;I have the virus, you&rsquo;re all going to get sick,&rdquo; as she contaminated the merchandise.
				Police deemed Cirko&rsquo;s saliva as a &ldquo;biological agent&rdquo; due to the state of emergency declaration in response to the coronavirus pandemic.
				Cirko&rsquo;s preliminary hearing in Luzerne County Central Court was continued. The proceeding will be rescheduled to a new date and will be held in the magisterial district courtroom of District Judge Joseph Halesey in Hanover Township.
				Cirko&rsquo;s alleged actions and arrest was reported nationally and internationally.
				According to the criminal complaint:
				Police responded to Gerrity&rsquo;s for a disorderly woman, identified as Cirko, yelling she &ldquo;has the virus&rdquo; while she was coughing and spitting saliva on food and other merchandise for sale.
				When store employees confronted Cirko, she yelled, &ldquo;I have the virus, now you are all going to get sick,&rdquo; the complaint says.
				Cirko allegedly attempted to steal a 12 pack of beer when she was followed out of the store by an employee.
				Police said surveillance cameras recorded Cirko entering the store at 1:50 p.m. and immediately started to violently cough, which attracted the attention of employees and customers, the complaint says.
				Cirko allegedly leaned closer to produce and coughed as she walked down the aisle, and continued to cough when she reached the meat department aisle.
				Police in the complaint stated cameras recorded Cirko walking down another aisle where she coughed on merchandise.
				An employee allegedly told police Cirko laughed as she was coughing, spitting and yelling she had the virus.
				Cirko was transported to Wilkes-Barre General Hospital after she was arrested.
				When Cirko was arraigned in the rear seat of a police cruiser by Halesey on March 26, police said at the time Cirko tested negative for COVID-19.
				Cirko was charged with criminal mischief, disorderly conduct, retail theft and bomb threats due to her saliva being designated as a &ldquo;biological agent.&rdquo;
				Joe Fasula, co-owner of the Scranton-based Gerrity&rsquo;s, said Cirko caused an estimated $35,000 in losses resulting in a large amount of merchandise being discarded.
				Store employees sanitized the aisles Cirko allegedly contaminated and replaced the discarded items with fresh merchandise within 24 hours.
				Cirko remains jailed at the county correctional facility for lack of $50,000 bail.

Hearing continued for alleged supermarket spitter