Top 10 Fascinating Cases Of Food Tampering

Food tampering is a crime that serves time. Throughout history, some of the dumbest criminals thought of getting away with it. When caught, they faced up to 20 years in jail.

Some of these cases are horrendous. Others are jaw dropping. Let’s take a look and see who made the list. Comment if you find a different one as interesting.

 

1. Marvin D. Washington Jr. :

Marvin Washington was a 19 year old employee at McDonald’s in Simpsonville. He was caught on camera in April of 2012, spitting into his customers’ tea. The customers came through the drive-thru ordering two sweetened teas. When they found the teas not sweetened, they came back to reorder. Again, the same issue ensued and they went home to add their own sweetener. Once opening, they found phlegm floating and called the police. Washington now faces up to 20 years in jail.

 

2. Alexander and Christine Clement:

In 2010, this couple did the oddest thing in order not to pay for their Jello pudding. This scheme involved them buying the pudding, replacing the contents with sand and salt mixed together. They would then return the box to get a refund. They continued to do so in 4 grocery stores until surveillance cameras caught them. They were charged with larceny and tampering with consumer products. Both were in their 60s.

 

3. Joseph Cartwell:

In 2009 a former Ohio deputy was accused of giving an inmate a bologna sandwich that was rubbed against another inmate’s genitals. The man was given a $500 fine plus court fees.

 

4. Calgary 2010:

11 cases in 9 stores were food tampering related in Calgary in 2010. Small shards of metal were found in products such as ground beef and oranges. Shoppers have become weary, being careful about what they buy. This, however, changed little about consumer habits. A group of copycats were responsible for this commotion.

 

5. Tatyana Granada:

Granada was arrested on 4 separate incidents of food tampering in Oakridge Co-op in early 2010. Needles and pins were inserted into fresh food items. She was also charged for trespassing after she was banned from the co-op store after shoplifting. Her lawyer argued that Granada did not understand her ban as it was not written in Russian, her native language. She was still found guilty.

 

6. Tiger Brands:

Removing the best before and use before dates of any products is easy. You just need a nail polish remover and a piece of cotton wool. A grocer complained to a manager that a batch of muffin mix was past its best before date. The products were removed immediately. However, they reappeared soon after without any dates. The store employee took the time to erase the dates and did not send the stock back to the supplier.

 

7. H.J. Heinz Co:

220 cases were reported of baby food being contaminated in April of 1989. A 14 year old boy became sick and was hospitalized after he swallowed glass. Two mothers also cut their fingers on glass in baby food. A 9 month old girl cut herself when she bit a razor blade in baby yogurt. A man actually had the nerve to also call in and demand a ransom for $1.7 million.

 

8. Scott Savino:

A former cook at Burger King was accused of spraying cleaning products on food. Specific to the case was the whopper hamburger served to Monroe County’s sheriff deputy. The deputy became ill after eating the sandwich in April of 2000. The boy was acquitted of assault but was convicted on felony charges of food tampering.

 

9. Eunice Teenager:

A teenager in Eunice was accused in 2003 of slipping razor blades into apple pies at a fast food restaurant. He underwent psychological evaluation to determine if he is mentally capable of standing trial.

 

10. No Frills-Etobicoke:

In October of 2010, the store was hit by a safety alert with two cases of food tampering. One customer found a screw in a container of veggie dip while the other found a needle in the packaging of No Name Italian Style Vegetables. More serious cases were found the same year but in a different No Frills store involving a needle in a sausage.

 

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