CaptnKirk
Lifer
Chilli - right here !
Was there really ever a doubt ?
<LA Times>
A couple accused of plotting to defraud Wendy's by planting a severed fingertip in a bowl of chili pleaded guilty this afternoon.
Jaime Plascencia, 43, and his wife, Anna Ayala, 39, admitted to conspiracy and attempted grand theft in connection with the scheme. The Las Vegas couple face almost 10 years in prison at sentencing in November.
Prosecutors allege Ayala planted the 11/2-inch digit she got from her husband in a bowl of chili March 22.
"From the very beginning, we said we wanted to know the truth about this terrible incident," said Tom Mueller, president and chief operating officer, Wendy's North America. "Now we do"
"We hope Americans view Wendy's as a company that did the right things when this crime was committed against us," Mueller said.
Wendy's has estimated the publicity cost the chain about $1 million a day for 30 days.
"We're certainly satisfied that they're acknowledging responsibility for the crimes they committed," said Deputy Santa Clara County Dist. Atty. David Boyd.
Boyd said prosecutors offered no concessions in return for the pleas.
"She wanted to plead guilty early on," said Rick Ehler, the woman's defense attorney, "She recognized the harm she's done."
The fingertip came from Brian Paul Rossiter, 36, who lost it when his gloved hand got caught in a mechanical truck lift at a paving firm where he worked in Las Vegas.
Rossiter's attorney, Ivan Golde of Oakland, said his client would have testified that Plascencia told him about the scheme to defraud Wendy's.
He said Rossiter did not know about the plan when he sold the finger to Plascencia, a co-worker and friend, for $100 -- half of it to cancel a debt.
When Rossiter questioned Plascencia after hearing news on TV about the fingertip in the chili, "He said, 'My wife is good at this kind of thing. She sues people,"' Golde said.
Golde said Plascencia asked Rossiter not to say anything about the couple's plan, Golde said. Authorities have said that Rossiter has cooperated in the investigation.
You made your own hell, now you have to live with it. Hope they don't get a slap on the wrist, or too light a sentence.
Was there really ever a doubt ?
<LA Times>
A couple accused of plotting to defraud Wendy's by planting a severed fingertip in a bowl of chili pleaded guilty this afternoon.
Jaime Plascencia, 43, and his wife, Anna Ayala, 39, admitted to conspiracy and attempted grand theft in connection with the scheme. The Las Vegas couple face almost 10 years in prison at sentencing in November.
Prosecutors allege Ayala planted the 11/2-inch digit she got from her husband in a bowl of chili March 22.
"From the very beginning, we said we wanted to know the truth about this terrible incident," said Tom Mueller, president and chief operating officer, Wendy's North America. "Now we do"
"We hope Americans view Wendy's as a company that did the right things when this crime was committed against us," Mueller said.
Wendy's has estimated the publicity cost the chain about $1 million a day for 30 days.
"We're certainly satisfied that they're acknowledging responsibility for the crimes they committed," said Deputy Santa Clara County Dist. Atty. David Boyd.
Boyd said prosecutors offered no concessions in return for the pleas.
"She wanted to plead guilty early on," said Rick Ehler, the woman's defense attorney, "She recognized the harm she's done."
The fingertip came from Brian Paul Rossiter, 36, who lost it when his gloved hand got caught in a mechanical truck lift at a paving firm where he worked in Las Vegas.
Rossiter's attorney, Ivan Golde of Oakland, said his client would have testified that Plascencia told him about the scheme to defraud Wendy's.
He said Rossiter did not know about the plan when he sold the finger to Plascencia, a co-worker and friend, for $100 -- half of it to cancel a debt.
When Rossiter questioned Plascencia after hearing news on TV about the fingertip in the chili, "He said, 'My wife is good at this kind of thing. She sues people,"' Golde said.
Golde said Plascencia asked Rossiter not to say anything about the couple's plan, Golde said. Authorities have said that Rossiter has cooperated in the investigation.
You made your own hell, now you have to live with it. Hope they don't get a slap on the wrist, or too light a sentence.
