Anti-Mask Group Leader in Texas Dies From COVID-19

30-year-old Caleb Wallace, who was married and had three children, founded his San Angelo Freedom Defenders group to protest what he referred to as a "COVID-19 tyranny," opposing coronavirus-related health restrictions.

Caleb Wallace, one of the most ardent deniers of mandatory mask wearing in Texas, died on Saturday from the coronavirus.

The proudly unvaccinated protester spent one month in a hospital ICU bed. His wife has launched a GoFundMe money-raising campaign to cover their medical expenses during his sickness and death.

“Caleb has peacefully passed on. He will forever live in our hearts and minds,” she wrote on the funding platform’s page.

Wallace started receiving medical treatment on 30 July after being delivered to hospital by a relative. He refused to go to hospital and stayed several days at home after the first symptoms, including shortness of breath, high fever and a dry cough, appeared, reportedly taking “self-prescribed” medication, according to the San Angelo Standard-Times.

Last month, Wallace organized a protest against restrictive health measures imposed amid surging cases of the highly-contagious Delta variant of the coronavirus. Wallace and those who agreed with him did not believe that face masks and bans on businesses and schools are effective in fighting the pandemic.