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Infamous crab and soup vendor Alice Waugh is back at Crab Circle, and controversy has returned with her.Once banned, blasted online, and slapped with a $250,000 fine after pleading guilty to breaching the Public Health Act, the vendor has quietly reclaimed her stall at the popular crab spot located at Heroes Circle, Kingston.

Her reappearance, however, has reignited tensions, as some vendors fear her presence could scare away customers.

"She a mash up di place because once di people dem see har bleach-out face, nuhbody nuh wah buy nutten," one angry vendor said.

Once a popular vendor at Crab Circle, Waugh fell from grace after she was seen in a viral video in an unsanitary act while handling food in October 2023. The footage triggered widespread public outrage, and the number of persons who normally flocked the street side eatery for boiled crabs, soup and roasted corns dwindled dramatically.

The Kingston and St Andrew Municipal Corporation (KSAMC) along with the public health department effected a temporary shutdown of the facility, trained vendors in food handling and sanitation, and cleaned the area. Waugh was barred from vending there and was subsequently arrested and charged.

After being away for an extended period, Waugh quietly moved back into her stall. When THE STAR visited the popular food spot yesterday, it was clear the dust hadn't settled. One vendor exploded in anger as soon as Waugh was spotted.

"Dah woman coming like a crawsis to backside!" she fumed shortly after one of her long-time customers changed his mind about buying food there.

"A three years di man a buy from mi, and di minute him see har, him seh him nah come back," the vendor said.

"A just weh day mi finally start sell off mi things dem ... Yuh know how long it tek mi fi reach to dah point yah after weh she duh?" the vendor added.

Despite the brewing resentment, Waugh remained unfazed.

"All who nuh wah mi deh yah, a fi dem business dat," she told THE STAR defiantly. "A nuh dem come out yah come see mi?"

Waugh, who has sold at Crab Circle for nearly 40 years, insists she did the work to return legally. She says she completed training at the HEART/NSTA Trust and holds a valid food handler's permit.

According to her, only one vendor is making noise about her return.

"Nuhbody else nuh have nuh problem wid mi -- a she alone a talk," Waugh argued.

One nearby vendor seemed to agree. "From she come, di place a get lively again. Look how much car pass since yuh stand up yah," he said, hinting that curiosity about Waugh may actually be boosting foot traffic.

But one first-time visitor from Westmoreland told THE STAR she made the trip specifically for Crab Circle's famed fare -- but was unsettled to find Waugh back at her stall.

"Why dem mek she come back? Dem shouldn't mek she come back yah suh."

Despite her apprehension, hunger won in the end.

"After mi come suh far, mi nah guh back widout mi crab dem," she added, cracking open a crab leg as she waited for her corn.

Meanwhile, Robert Hill, CEO of the KSAMC, told THE STAR that Waugh had not been pre-approved to return.

"This is a subject for the chief public health inspector," Hill said. He said he only became aware of her presence at the location late last week.

"I contacted him as soon as I heard she was back. He has committed to conduct the necessary investigations and update me."

Hill declined to say whether Waugh is still officially barred, noting that a decision will hinge on the investigation and verification of her documents.