HOLLYWOOD, Fla. — Right around the time the World Health Organization was declaring the novel coronavirus a full-blown pandemic, Cody Lee Pfister walked into a Walmart in Missouri and delivered his own public service announcement — of the twisted variety.

Mr. Pfister, 26, looked directly into a camera and asked, “Who’s scared of coronavirus?” As if to answer his own question, he proceeded to lick a row of deodorants on a store shelf. For six seconds, he awkwardly slid backward, his tongue running from one brand of deodorant to the next.

He appeared amused. And satisfied enough to post the video online. Horror ensued. Grossed-out viewers from as close as his small hometown, Warrenton, Mo., to Ireland and the Netherlands reported the video prank to the police. And soon Mr. Pfister was facing charges of making a terrorist threat.

“Immature. Tasteless. Youthful indiscretion. Yes, it was a very foolish thing to do,” acknowledged Mr. Pfister’s lawyer, Patrick J. Coyne. “But he is not a bad person. He made a bad choice.”