An Oklahoma woman has filed a lawsuit against Arby’s, alleging that a staff member contaminated her food with spit, resulting in her contracting oral herpes, according to court documents from Oxygen.
Amanda Marcine Hendricks faces a felony charge for allegedly poisoning food with the intent to cause harm, based on court documents reviewed by Oxygen. As of now, it is not known if Hendricks has entered a plea in response to the charges.
According to a probable cause affidavit obtained by Oxygen, the incident occurred on March 28, when Jennica Church visited an Arby’s location in Broken Bow, ordering four sandwiches.
“There was a bit of a delay,” Church recounted to KJRH. “I thought maybe they were upset because it was almost closing time.”
Church explained to the outlet that she and Hendricks, who was working that night, had some prior interaction, though she described it as “nothing major.”
Store surveillance video cited in the affidavit allegedly showed Hendricks preparing Church’s order before apparently spitting into one of the sandwiches.
“Amanda has the meat in her hands and lifts it to neck level and leans her head down and you can see the saliva leave her mouth and go into the sandwich,” an officer wrote in the affidavit. “Amanda continues making the other three sandwiches and sending out the order.”
Church brought the order home and shared it with her father-in-law and grandmother-in-law, according to KJRH. Later that night, she claimed her mouth “flared up” and a doctor eventually diagnosed her with herpes.
According to the Mayo Clinic, herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) spreads through close contact, such as kissing and can cause fluid-filled cold sores around the mouth that can take several weeks to heal. There is no cure for HSV-1.
Church told KJRH that she was unaware of the alleged incident—until she learned that Hendricks was allegedly bragging about it. The story spread fast in their small town, according to KJRH, eventually reaching Church’s daughter.
On April 17, police contacted Hendricks, who agreed to an interview. The next day, she called to cancel due to lack of transportation, according to the affidavit. Then the conversation took an unexpected turn.
“While speaking with Amanda she made the utterance that I have the footage,” an officer wrote in the affidavit, “and she was not going to waste my time, yes, she did it.”
Hendricks was arrested June 21 and booked into the McCurtain County Jail, where she currently remains on a $25,000 bond, a jail spokesperson told Oxygen. If convicted, she faces up to five years in prison and a fine of up to $1,000 or both.
The lawsuit, which lists Hendricks, Arby’s of Broken Bow and other restaurant groups as defendants, alleges: “At the time Defendant Hendricks spit on the food, she knew she had Herpes Simplex Virus Type 1 (HSV-1), commonly known as oral herpes.”
The suit claims Church developed painful lesions and cold sores after eating the allegedly contaminated food. Per the suit, the situation has caused “debilitating fear and anxiety about transmitting the virus” to her husband and children.
Church is also concerned about how potential flare-ups will affect her service.
“Several times a week, I get a flare up,” Church told KJRH. “It goes all the way up to the top of my eye [and] my eye twitches. It’s very painful.”
She added, “If I go out to eat and I see somebody with that big old thing on their face, I don’t want them serving my food. It’s sad.”
Attorney Will Blocker, who filed the lawsuit, told KJRH that employees who witnessed the alleged incident had a responsibility to report it.
“They let it go all the way out the door,” he said, “to the point my client now has a communicable disease.”
Court records do not list an attorney for Hendricks. Her next court date is July 21.
An Arby’s spokesperson did not immediately return a request for comment from Oxygen.