South Carolina Woman Arrested for Repeatedly Licking Hands and Touching Items Inside Grocery Store and Restaurant

News Reporter

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A woman has been arrested on suspicion of licking her hands and touching items at a restaurant and grocery store in South Carolina.

Shenir Gibson Holliday, 38, has been charged with aggravated breach of peace and food tampering in connection with two separate incidents in Sumter.

She was arrested on May 2 after Sumter Police were called to an IGA supermarket on Pinewood Road following reports of a suspicious person.

When officers found her in the parking lot, they discovered she matched the description of a suspect who was seen on surveillance footage licking her hands and touching items at Sub Station II on Peach Orchard Road on April 27.

According to the deputies' report, seen by WMBF, Holliday licked her fingers while she was paying for her food, as well as licking her palm and touching the debit card machine.

The suspect also allegedly licked coins before putting them in the tip jar and leaving without her food.

Witnesses described hearing Holliday say "It's in God's hands now" while leaving Sub Station II.

Police then reviewed the surveillance footage at the IGA store, where Holliday was allegedly seen licking her hands and coughing before pulling on freezer doors and touching food items.

She is also alleged to have done the same thing in the supermarket's dry food section.

Shenir Gibson Holliday has been charged with aggravated breach of peace and food tampering after allegedly licking her hands and touching items. Sumter Police

Holliday was charged by Sumter Police with aggravated breach of peace and food tampering and was issued a citation for violation of the state home-or-work order following the incident at the IGA.

A $100,000 bond was set and a coronavirus test has been ordered for her.

She has also been charged with aggravated breach of peace and food tampering by the Sumter County Sheriff's Office in connection to the Sub Station II incident.

"Food tampering is a felony that carries a penalty of up to 20 years and aggravated breach of peace could result in a maximum 10-year sentence," a Sumter County Sheriff's Office spokesperson said.

Holliday has also been put on trespass notice for all Sub Station II locations.

Businesses that recognize Holliday from other incidents are asked to contact the Sumter County Sheriff's Office on (803) 436-2161.

There are at least 6,500 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in South Carolina, with 267 deaths according to Johns Hopkins University. In total, 180,152 people have managed to recover from the virus across the U.S.

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