An Arby’s manager in Oklahoma has been charged with a felony after allegedly spitting into a customer’s food during a late-night visit to the restaurant, according to police and a civil lawsuit.
Amanda Hendricks was charged with felony poisoning with intent to injure in connection with the alleged March 28 incident. She was arrested Sunday and booked into the McCurtain County Jail.
Authorities opened an investigation after an Arby’s employee reported that another worker had allegedly spit into food prepared for a customer. Investigators later interviewed restaurant employees and reviewed surveillance footage recorded inside the location.
Police said the video appeared to show Hendricks operating a meat slicer and handling sandwich meat. According to investigators, she lowered her head toward the food, and saliva was allegedly seen falling from her mouth onto the meat in the customer’s sandwich.
A civil lawsuit filed against Arby’s claims Hendricks knew she was experiencing an active herpes outbreak at the time of the alleged contamination.
The customer reportedly ate one of the sandwiches while driving away from the restaurant. She then took the remaining food home and shared it with her husband and mother-in-law, who was receiving hospice care at the time, according to the lawsuit.
The complaint alleges that the customer later developed symptoms, including a lesion or cold sore on her lip. She subsequently tested positive for HSV-1, the lawsuit states.
The lawsuit does not establish that the food was definitively the source of the customer’s infection. The allegation that the customer contracted the virus through the meal has not been proven in court.
The civil complaint accuses Arby’s of allowing Hendricks to remain at work despite her “active herpes outbreak with visible lesions.” It argues that the restaurant failed to protect customers from a worker who was allegedly experiencing symptoms of a contagious condition.
According to the lawsuit, the customer now “lives in constant fear” that she could transmit herpes to her husband or their children.
The lawsuit seeks to hold the restaurant responsible for the alleged actions of its employee and for the harm the customer claims she suffered after eating the food.
Hendricks faces a criminal charge of poisoning with intent to injure, but the accusations against her remain allegations. A conviction would require prosecutors to prove the charge in court.
It was not immediately clear whether Hendricks had entered a plea or retained an attorney. Arby’s response to the allegations and the civil lawsuit was also not included in the available information.