Man jailed for spraying urine, feces on food in UK
Apr 14 12:32 PM US/Eastern
By RAPHAEL G. SATTER
Associated Press Writer
LONDON (AP) - An unemployed chemist was jailed Tuesday for spraying a mix of
urine and feces on food, wine and children's books in several British
stores.
Sahnoun Daifallah was sentenced to nine years in prison after being found
guilty of four counts of contaminating goods.
The 42-year-old Algerian carried a mix of his waste in a container of weed
killer concealed in a laptop bag, a court found. Using the nozzle, which
poked out of the bag, Daifallah was able to spray large areas, leaving a
powerful stench and causing tens of thousands of pounds (dollars) worth of
damage
Daifallah's first target was The Air Balloon pub and restaurant near the
south England town of Cheltenham, which he visited around lunchtime on May
14. Kate Rochead, on duty that day, told The Associated Press she didn't
know exactly what area he sprayed.
"All we know was that it was a horrendous smell that was left behind," she
said.
Daifallah next visited a bookstore in neighboring Cirencester, dousing
hundreds of books-most of them in the children's section.
Two days later he struck in the nearby suburban area of Quedgeley, where a
customer spotting him squirting the frozen french fries at a supermarket.
Daifallah then drove four miles (six kilometers) to another supermarket,
where an employee in the wine section noticed him acting suspiciously and
reported an overpowering stench. Both supermarkets were closed for two days
for cleaning. Shoppers reported suffering from rashes and nausea.
Local police said the products weren't handled by customers, but Morrisons,
one of the supermarkets targeted, said a small number of goods were returned
as a precautionary measure. Tesco, the other supermarket hit by Daifallah,
declined comment.
Police were able to identify Daifallah using security camera footage. When
they raided his home, they found a stockpile of the substance and plans to
spread it. Plastic bags containing excrement were marked with the names of
cities on them.
Daifallah represented himself at Bristol Crown Court, where he pleaded not
guilty.
Judge Carol Hagen said Britain's security agencies had labeled him a high
risk to public safety. Authorities have already begun deportation
proceedings.