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An Oklahoma Arby’s manager has been charged with felony poisoning after a customer claimed she contracted herpes from food that police say was contaminated when the employee spat into it.
Amanda Hendricks, a former manager at the fast-food restaurant in Broken Bow, Okla., is accused of contaminating food ordered by customer Jennica Church during a late-night visit on March 28, according to court records and a police affidavit.
“I love Arby’s — not anymore,” Church told Scripps News Group.
Church later filed a lawsuit against Arby’s, alleging she contracted HSV-1, commonly known as herpes, from the contaminated food.
Police launched an investigation after receiving a report from an Arby’s employee who claimed another worker had spit into a customer’s meal, according to the affidavit.
Investigators obtained a search warrant for surveillance footage from the restaurant and reviewed video recorded the night Church placed her order.
“It was taking a little bit of time,” Church recalled. “I thought they were mad at me because it was about to close.”
The footage shows Hendricks handling meat for a sandwich before lowering her head toward the food, the affidavit alleges. Police wrote that saliva could be seen falling onto the sandwich.
Church said she had stopped at the restaurant after finishing a bartending shift and purchased a meal through the drive-thru.
