Singapore: A French student was fined S$600 ($465) in Singapore on Thursday for public nuisance after a video showing him licking a straw and returning it to a vending machine went viral on social media earlier this year.

According to Anadolu Agency, Didier Gaspard Owen Maximilien, a 19-year-old French national, pleaded guilty to public nuisance, with a second mischief charge taken into consideration, according to local broadcaster CNA. On March 12, Maximilien took a straw from a vending machine, licked about half of it, and returned it to the dispenser while filming the act. He then collected his drink, took the contaminated straw, and left.

Maximilien later edited and posted the video on Instagram. The footage went viral after someone from his Instagram followers shared it with a media outlet. The incident prompted the vendor to replace all 500 straws in the dispenser at a cost of S$5 in total.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Maximilian Chew, who took over the case from a state prosecuting officer, said a fine would suffice because of Maximilien's youth and the circumstances of the case. Defense lawyer Kalidass Murugaiyan stated that the contaminated straw was not used by anyone. He noted, "Unfortunately, he made the decision to share it within his Instagram circle ... someone in his circle, within his Instagram circle of contacts, had taken a screen video of it and forwarded it to a media outlet and that's how it went viral."