Woman seen licking ice cream in viral video faces up to 20 years in jail

A woman filmed licking ice cream before putting it back on a supermarket shelf could face up to 20 years behind bars.

Detectives have been working to confirm the identity of the woman in the video and said when verified, police will arrest her on a charge of second degree tampering with a consumer product.

The video, which was uploaded to Twitter on June 28, shows the woman opening a punnet of ice cream and running her tongue over the surface of the dessert in a Lufkin Walmart store in the US state of Texas.

According to the state’s law, the charge the woman faces comes with a fine of up to $14,000 and a prison sentence from two to 20 years.

Police posted on Facebook the investigation was ongoing.

Lufkin director of public safety Gerald Williams said the biggest concern was consumer safety.

“In that regard we are glad to see the tainted product off the shelves,” he said.

Blue Bell, the maker of the ice cream contaminated by the woman, have removed all half-gallons of the Tin Roof flavour from the Lufkin Walmart shelves.

Since the incident police have also pulled CCTV footage from the store that shows a woman entering the Walmart branch with a man.

Police are also trying to identify him as part of their investigation.

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