A US Army reservist fears for her safety after becoming the target of coronavirus conspiracy theorists.

Maatje Benassi, a security officer at the US Army's Fort Belvoir in Virginia, told CNN she and her family have received death threats following claims she is patient zero.

“It's like waking up from a bad dream going into a nightmare day after day," an emotional Maatje, supported by her husband, Matt Benassi, told CNN Business reporter Donie O’Sullivan.

The couple, parents to two children, even had their home address posted online.

"I want everybody to stop harassing me, because this is cyberbullying to me and it's gone way out of hand," Maatje said.

"It needs to stop because … someone who has a parent or child who died of coronavirus could come to my house and think I [started the pandemic].

YouTube videos claim Benassi brought COVID-19 to China when she competed in the Military World Games in Wuhan last October. Some of the comments on the posts include “Execute these people” and “These people will get a bullet to the skull”.

The claims have gone viral around the world, including in China. Even the Chinese Communist Party has shared the false claims, a move US Defense Secretary Mark Esper said was "completely ridiculous and irresponsible".

Benassi did compete in the Games as a cyclist, but denies having had the virus.

The Benassis told CNN one of the main perpetuators of the rumor is George Webb, an American YouTube personality who regularly posts videos about unsubstantiated conspiracy theories. Maatje and Matt have tried to take legal action to stop Webb spreading the allegations, but Webb is protected under Freedom of Speech laws.

“It’s unreal, the danger he has put us in," Maatje said.

Matt said he fears the situation could "turn into another Pizzagate," – referencing the December 2016 incident where a man fired an assault weapon in a Washington DC pizzeria after reading false online claims the Clintons ran a paedophile ring there.

“We are interwoven into [Webb's] storyline now,” Matt said. “He is never going to give it up.”

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