Woman charged over alleged needles in strawberry sabotage
A disgruntled farm worker faces up to 10 years’ jail after she was charged for allegedly putting needles in strawberries, sparking a crisis that shook the nation and risked crippling growers.
A disgruntled farm worker allegedly put needles in strawberries, sparking a crisis that shook the nation and risked crippling growers.
The 50-year-old woman, My Ut Trinh, known as Judy, was arrested and charged after allegedly contaminating strawberries with needles.
HOW THE SORRY STRAWBERRY SABOTAGE SAGA UNFOLDED
The Courier-Mail understands Trinh worked at the Berrylicious/Berry Obsession farm in southeast Queensland as a supervisor of fruit pickers.
She is believed to have had grievances about how she thought she was being treated.
Police will allege she had told people about exacting revenge for the perceived gripes.
Trinh was arrested after DNA was found in a contaminated punnet of strawberries in a Victorian supermarket, it will be alleged.
Escorted by officers in a police car, the Caboolture woman was met by a throng of media at the Brisbane Watchhouse about 5pm on Sunday.
Police charged her with seven counts of contamination of goods, which has a three-year maximum penalty.
In addition, a circumstance of aggravation will be alleged by police, elevating the maximum to 10 years imprisonment.
She is expected to appear in the Brisbane Magistrates Court on Monday morning.
The contamination crisis blew up in September when a man allegedly bit into a needle in a strawberry in Brisbane.
Authorities revealed three punnets of Queensland-grown strawberries containing needles had surfaced here and in Victoria.
The sabotage was traced to the Berrylicious/Berry Obsession farm in southeast Queensland that supplied Woolworths and other stores.
A third brand — Donnybrook Berries — was pulled from shelves days later prompting the State Government to offer $100,000 for the strawberry spiker’s capture.
The Queensland Strawberry Growers Association welcomed news of the arrest last night.
“Given the crippling impact on the Queensland strawberry industry, this person should be brought to account to the full extent of the law,” the association’s Jennifer Rowling said.
“It is disconcerting that the (allegations) relate to only six or seven punnets of strawberries, proving that the majority of the 200-plus incidents were copycats or false reports.”
Ms Rowling said false reports should be met with criminal charges.
In the wake of the crisis, PM Scott Morrison toughened penalties for food contamination and the Queensland Government put up a $1 million industry rescue package.
Berrylicious/Berry Obsession owner Kevin Tran said that the alleged sabotage had been catastrophic for business. He was forced to dump 40 tonnes of picked fruit and believed the alleged sabotage cost him $500,000.
“Financially it was bad, I lost a lot of money with the recall,” Mr Tran said last month.
Elimbah-based Donnybrook Berries shared what would become a well-known image of the crisis — an enormous mountain of discarded strawberries that took days to create.
The alleged needle sabotage was followed by scores of copycat contamination across the country and several overseas trading partners black-listing strawberry imports.
From the outset, the Queensland Strawberry Growers Association said that a disgruntled ex-employee could have been the culprit in the matter.
Queensland’s chief health officer Dr Jeannette Young held rolling press briefings to address the crisis.
She was flanked by Queensland Police who had assembled a team of 100 officers — including 60 seasoned detectives — in a bid to find the culprit.
They found themselves overwhelmed by the copycat reports.
This included a case involving a 62-year-old woman on a motorised scooter who rolled into her Maryborough supermarket and put a pin in a banana.
Dozens of interviews with itinerant fruit pickers were conducted, while Australian Border Force officials also became involved.
Police yesterday described the investigation as “complex”.
“The QPS co-ordinated a national investigative response with multiple government, law enforcement and intelligence agencies,” police said in a statement.
“A police taskforce was established with officers from the State Crime Command co-ordinating the investigation together with detectives in a number of police districts in Queensland.”
HOW THE CRISIS UNFOLDED
SEPTEMBER 9
Man eats strawberry contaminated by needle in Queensland, admitted to Sunshine Coast University Hospital with abdominal pain.
SEPTEMBER 11
Another needle found in Gladstone, along with two cases in Victoria. A mother living at Kellyville Ridge finds a pin inside a pink lady apple.
SEPTEMBER 12
Woolworths removes the brands Berry Obsession and Berrylicious from its shelves in NSW, Queensland and Victoria. Pins found in punnets of strawberries sold at Coles Wingham and Coles Green Hills. Queensland Police announces an investigation into the contamination.
SEPTEMBER 13
Police and health authorities encourage families to cut up their strawberries before eating, and warn of copycat cases.
SEPTEMBER 14
Three needles discovered in a punnet of strawberries at Coles Engadine. Later that day, Coles withdraws strawberries from sales in all states except Western Australia.
SEPTEMBER 15
NSW Police warns the people of NSW and says it has received reports of contaminated strawberries purchased at supermarkets at Tweed Heads, Taree and Wingham.
SEPTEMBER 16
Contaminated strawberries found in Adelaide Hills.
SEPTEMBER 17
Coles begins stocking strawberries again. Farmers begin dumping unsold strawberries,
putting the $500 million industry at risk.
SEPTEMBER 18
Strawberry industry calls for calm in wake of tampering issue, and says the crisis has damaged the industry and cost growers millions of dollars. Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk announces $1 million in funding to boost the strawberry industry as farmers struggle following recent incidents of contamination.
SEPTEMBER 19
NSW Police begin investigating a complaint about a needle that was allegedly found inside a banana at a grocery store in Condell Park. A Coles customer shopping at West Gosford discovers a needle inside a mango.
SEPTEMBER 20
NSW Police say they are DNA testing needles and packaging to find copycat offenders after more than 50 cases of fruit sabotage have been reported in the state.House of Representative and the Senate strengthen food safety laws, with criminals guilty of contaminating fruit now facing up to 15 years in jail. Woolworths stops selling sewing needles.
SEPTEMBER 24
New Zealand supermarket Countdown removes Australian strawberries from the shelves after a woman in Auckland finds a needle in a punnet.
NOVEMBER 1
Queensland Agriculture Minister Mark Furner announces the beginning of the Government-backed support package for the strawberry industry to roll out during summer.
NOVEMBER 11
Farm worker My Ut Trinh, 50, is arrested and charged.
Originally published as Woman charged over alleged needles in strawberry sabotage
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