Man arrested after posting a viral video of him eating a snake that he claimed would 'keep COVID-19 at bay'

• An Indian man posted a viral video of him eating a dead snake.
• He claimed that doing so would "keep Covid at bay," India Today reported.
• Environmentalists shared the video with law enforcement officers, leading to the 50-year-old's arrest.

A 50-year-old agricultural worker was arrested in Tamil Naidu, India on Thursday after posting a viral video of him eating a snake, according to India Today.

The man, known only as Vadivelu, shared a video of him ripping a dead snake in two and then consuming large portions of it.

"It keeps Covid at bay," Vadivelu claimed, India Today reported.

Environmentalists sent the video to officers from the state's forest department. Officials later arrested Vadivelu and fined him around 7,500 rupees, or $104, India Today reported.

The man claims to have been forced into eating the snake by other men while he was drunk, The Times of India said.

There is no evidence to suggest that eating snakes cures COVID-19. In fact, it has the potential to be life-threatening.

"He was lucky that he did not bite into the venom glands of the snake which was a common krait," Madurai S Ananda, the district forest officer, told The Times of India. "The common krait contains neurotoxins that can paralyze a human being."

This is not the first time a fake coronavirus cure has been promoted in India. A renowned doctor in Gurugram recommending spices to treat the virus, Insider previously reported.

Doctors have also warned against the practice of using cow dung to ward off COVID-19, Insider's Sophia Ankel wrote.