*A 26-year-old Missouri man has been charged with making a terrorist threat after exploiting the public’s fear about the deadly COVID-19.
Cody Lee Pfister posted a video of himself licking items inside a Walmart store on March 11, and saying into the camera, “Who’s scared of coronavirus,” NBC News reports.
It wasn’t long after the disturbing clip appeared online that local residents as well as folks the Netherlands, Ireland and the United Kingdom called the City of Warrenton Police Department to complain about the clip.
Pfister was tracked down and arrested on Monday and charged with terrorist threats, a low-level felony.
“We take this incident very seriously especially with this infectious disease and the state that the country is in,” Lt. Justin Unger told NBC News. “We take these things seriously to protect our community.”
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Whose nasty ass child is this? ? pic.twitter.com/a6KoEUL5rD
— chris evans (@notcapnamerica) March 24, 2020
A criminal complaint states that Pfister “knowingly caused a false belief or fear that a condition involving danger to life existed” by posting the video online.
“This particular video, which won’t be shared here, has gained some international attention and we have received numerous reports about the video from locals, nearby residents, as well as people from the Netherlands, Ireland, and the United Kingdom,” a Warrenton Police Department rep said. “We take these complaints very seriously and would like to thank all of those who reported the video so the issue could be addressed.”
Pfister appeared in court on Wednesday and his next scheduled appearance is in May.
In related news, a New Jersey man has also been charged with making a terroristic threat after he purposely coughed on a Wegmans employee and said he had coronavirus.
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