Two allegedly vengeful former employees are accused of poisoning the salsa at Mi Ranchito in Lenexa.
Husband-and-wife duo Arnoldo Bazan, 30, and Yini De La Torre, 19, are accused of mixing a Methomyl-based pesticide into salsa and serving it to customers at Mi Ranchito's Lenexa location.
Court documents allege that Bazan and De La Torre plotted
to poison Mi Ranchito's customers, hoping to hurt the restaurant's business as well as hoping the blame would fall
on the restaurant's owner.
Bazan allegedly wanted revenge after losing his job -- he worked at the Olathe Mi Ranchito until June 27
-- and his vehicle.
Prosecutors allege threats against the owner were issued through Mi Ranchito's Web
site. That is, unless Bazan's vehicle was returned. Wonder how
authorities ever figured this one out?
Then on August 10, De La Torre allegedly poisoned the salsa at the Lenexa Mi
Ranchito. A day later, 12 people fell ill, suffering nausea, abdominal
cramps, weakness, sweating and discomfort.
Bazan allegedly issued another threat on August 28, sending word that "the worst" was yet to
come.
Two days later, prosecutors allege that De La Torre once again poisoned
the salsa at the Lenexa Mi Ranchito. This time, 36 people became ill.
That same day, De La Torre told reporters that the salsa was to blame.
August 30 was also De La Torre's last day at the Lenexa Mi Ranchito.
Court documents indicate a possible rift between Bazan and De
La Torre. On September 8, Bazan allegedly warned De La Torre that if she spoke with police,
she would be physically
harmed.
Bazan and De La Torre, both from Shawnee, Kansas, are charged with
conspiring to recklessly endanger other people by conspiring to tamper
with a consumer product and two counts of tampering with a consumer
product.
If convicted, Bazan and De La Torre face a maximum of 10 years in
federal prison without parole for the conspiracy charges. The tampering
charges come with a maximum 20-year sentence without parole.
When several people fell ill after eating at Mi Ranchito in late August, the restaurant's owner blamed a carbonated water line and announced that the illnesses were not related to Mi Ranchito's food.
Here's the statement:
"The source of the illnesses experienced by some of our Lenexa restaurant patrons has been discovered and will be remedied. The appropriate authorities have assured us that the illnesses were not food related and were limited to only the Lenexa location. Mi Ranchito will reopen its Lenexa location as soon as possible in order to serve our loyal customers."
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A great place to eat, good food wonderful service - we love it. If I were the prosecutor I'd be filling Federal terrorism charges. It never ceases to amaze me how much damage, real and imagined, can be done by one or two persons. Anyway, we never stopped eating at the Lenexa location, and continue to stop in there 2 or more times a week.
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