An Oklahoma woman says she developed herpes after eating a sandwich from Arby’s, and investigators later reviewed surveillance footage that allegedly showed a former manager spitting into the order.
Amanda Hendricks, 38, a former Arby’s manager in Oklahoma, is facing a felony charge of poisoning with intent to injure after a customer claimed her meal was tampered with during a late-night visit on March 28, 2026.
The customer, Jennica Church, had stopped at the restaurant after finishing a bartending shift late that night.
According to court records and the civil lawsuit filed in mid-June, Church ate part of the order after leaving the drive-thru and later shared the remaining sandwiches with family members. By the next morning, she said her mouth had broken out, and she was later diagnosed with herpes simplex virus type 1, or HSV-1.
Oral herpes is a common viral infection that can cause cold sores on or around the lips and mouth. Once a person is infected, the virus remains in the body for life, although outbreaks may be infrequent.
Symptoms can include fever, swollen lymph nodes in the neck, a sore throat, redness and swelling in the throat, sores at the back of the throat, and painful sores affecting the gums, tongue, and roof of the mouth.
Oral herpes can also be transmitted to the genital area, resulting in genital herpes.
“I love Arby’s – not anymore,”
Church said when speaking to 2News Oklahoma.
“It was taking a little bit of time,”
she added about the food order.
“I thought they were mad at me because it was about to close.”
In a lawsuit filed by Church and her family against Arby’s, Hendricks is accused of knowingly spitting into the food while allegedly experiencing an active herpes outbreak.
Police and court documents say Broken Bow officers reviewed surveillance footage from the restaurant and saw Hendricks spit into the meal. The complaint also alleges that Hendricks was allowed to work despite what it describes as an active herpes outbreak with visible lesions.
The family’s attorney, Will Blocker, said:
“They let it go all the way out the door and my client now has a communicable disease.
“That has to be a culture deeper than Arby’s in Broken Bow, Oklahoma. Maybe it’s Flynn Restaurant Group and all 300 stores they own. I don’t know, but we are going to find out.”
The civil complaint also argues that the restaurant allowed Hendricks to remain on the job despite what it describes as an ‘active herpes outbreak with visible lesions’.
It further states that Church now ‘lives in constant fear’ that she could transmit the virus to her husband or their children.
Church’s mother-in-law, Patricia Dollarhite, also spoke to 2News.
“My son was sitting at my table, eating breakfast and he wanted a kiss, and he could not get one, so you bet I’m angry.
“I see what it’s doing to my grandchildren, my son, my husband. I don’t want to kiss my husband. He ate the food! Because he hasn’t had an outbreak, doesn’t mean he doesn’t have it.”
Hendricks was arrested on Sunday, June 21, 2026, and booked into McCurtain County Jail in Oklahoma.
Arby’s has been approached for comment.