Dealer in German rotten meat probe commits suicide
Pastor Dale Morgan
*Dealer in German rotten meat probe commits suicide*
06 Sep 2006 14:25:17 GMT
Source: Reuters
By Kerstin Doerr
MUNICH, Sept 6 (Reuters) - A German meat distributor at the centre of a
widening police probe into the sale of rotten meat and vegetables has
committed suicide, police in the southern city of Munich said on Wednesday.
The 74-year-old's company is at the heart of a European food safety
scare after police last week impounded more than 120 tonnes of tainted
meat, some of it more than four years out-of-date, at buildings and cold
stores belonging to the firm.
They raided restaurants and launched an investigation into whether
tainted produce was sold with altered sell-by dates.
Police found another 60 tonnes of rotten meat and 40 tonnes of rotten
vegetables at the distribution firm on Wednesday, following the owner's
suicide earlier in the morning.
The firm was close to bankruptcy, police inspector Josef Wilfling told a
news conference, adding that a web of suspect meat sales to fast food
stands in Germany was emerging.
Meat had been thawed, processed and refrozen, Wilfling said, adding that
he feared the existence of a corrupt "doner kebab mafia", supplying some
of Germany's ubiquitous kebab stands with thick skewers made up of
rotten meat.
"Not all kebab stands can be put under general suspicion," Wilfling
said, adding that only a few criminals were involved.
The meat distributor was the main suspect in the investigations but
police believe others were involved. Prosectors had requested access to
company accounts before the man committed suicide and had been hoping he
would cooperate.
Officials in Brussels said rotten produce from the company may have
reached consumers in eight other European Union countries in recent weeks.
Before the raids, the Munich-based company had managed to export some 90
tonnes of meat and other foodstuffs, Commission spokesman Philip Tod
told a news briefing.
The countries concerned were Austria, Belgium, Denmark, France, Italy,
Luxembourg, the Czech Republic and Netherlands.
They were immediately notified by the Commission through its electronic
warning network known as the Rapid Alert system, which allows other EU
countries to identify risks to the food and feed chain within the
shortest space of time possible.
The company supplied 2,500 customers, 50 of which were outside the country.
"It seems that the 'eat-by' date had been changed but in fact the meat
was old and putrid. That was what was concluded by the Bavarian
authorities," Tod said.
The scare comes less than a year after Germany tightened controls on the
meat industry following national outrage over another stomach-turning
food scandal. It has sparked a debate over the failures of Germany's
federal system where the national government is often oblivious to
regional investigations. (additional reporting by Jeremy Smith in Brussels)