Some people want online recognition so badly that they are willing to go to extreme lengths of stupidity to claim it, even if it means putting innocent lives at risk.
Recently a man from North Carolina, Justin Rhodes, posted a video of himself entering his local Walmart and talking about how he just tested positive for COVID-19 and was instructed to self-quarantine. So, obviously, he decided it was a good idea to go to a very public place to spread the illness.
He can be seen in the video claiming he “definitely tested positive for the coronavirus” and was asked to self-quarantine for 14-21 days, which is standard procedure.
However, he claimed to have no sympathy for the public and said, “I gotta eat too, so y’all just gotta deal with it.”
He clearly has no regard for the wellness of anyone around him because for the rest of the video Rhodes is discussing all the other places he had been that day.
The video has since been deleted from Facebook, but nothing ever really leaves the internet as it has been posted on Youtube and has more than 4 million views.
The man was arrested for his stunt and posted an apology, but it was just too late. His bond was posted at $10,000 and a court date has been set for March.
“To all of you who have seen, heard & reacted to my video over the weekend. I would like to apologize to you especially the elderly, the @albemarlepolicedepartment who responded to this incident, and all those who where [sic] scared. I want to say sorry, I am sincerely sorry I acted very foolishly, stupidly and during a uneasy time not only for our community but for the world. Everyone that knows me knows it wasn’t serious, they know it wasn’t meant to hurt or instill fear in anyone. I’ve never taken this virus seriously at all and we don’t watch television at our home so our knowledge of the world does[n]t reach farther then social media and for that I apologize, I been looking into this virus and I see now the world of hurt it is causing our communities especially Italy…”
Good thing you can’t spread stupid through a video.
