Police say they have identified the girl seen in a viral video licking a tub of Blue Bell ice cream and then putting it back in the freezer at a Walmart in Texas.
The Lufkin Police Department announced on Facebook Friday that the suspect is a juvenile from San Antonio whose case will be turned over to the Texas Juvenile Justice Department.
Police did not release her name by law because she is a juvenile, which is defined in Texas as under the age of 17.
Lufkin police said she and her boyfriend, whose family lives in the Lufkin area, were "both forthcoming with what occurred and admitted to the act."
Lufkin police had previously said the suspect could face a second-degree felony charge of tampering with a consumer product. The charge is punishable with between two to 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $10,000, according to the Texas penal code.
However, police said Friday it does not intend to charge her as an adult and wrote that "therefore what happens from here is at the discretion of the juvenile justice system."
The woman's boyfriend is a legal adult, police said. Prosecutors are discussing his involvement in the incident with police as far as whether he will face any charges.
The video was first posted on June 29 on Twitter, where it had more than 12 million views by Friday.
It shows a girl in the freezer aisle at the Walmart in Lufkin removing the top off a tub of Blue Bell ice cream, which does not have a protective layer of plastic over it, and then taking a big lick. She then puts the carton back in the freezer.
(Note: The following video contains language some might find offensive.)
Police obtained surveillance video matching the suspect to the video and putting her at the Walmart in Lufkin on June 28 around 11 p.m.
Finding the suspect also involved dealing with a "catfishing" situation online, police said.
"What made this case difficult is that a 'catfish' with a similar screen name (within one letter of the suspect’s screen name) began taking credit for it,'' the police said in the release Friday. "It was actually the catfish and NOT our suspect who bragged on Instagram about the incident saying: 'Yeah, I really did that. You can call it Flu Bell ice cream now ‘cause I was a lil sick last week. Repost yourself doing this. Let’s see if we can start an epidemic (literally).'
"There were roughly 4-6 women with similar screen names and appearances that law enforcement had to eliminate — including the catfish — before getting to the actual suspect."
Texas-based Blue Bell posted a statement on its website earlier this week that it is taking this issue very seriously and "this type of incident will not be tolerated."
The company removed all the tubs of the flavor seen in the video from the shelves at the Walmart in Lufkin as a precaution. It also explained why there isn't a plastic seal protecting its ice cream.
"During production, our half gallons are flipped upside down and sent to a hardening room where the ice cream freezes to the lid, creating a natural seal. The lids are frozen tightly to the carton. Any attempt at opening the product should be noticeable," the company wrote in its statement.