Listeria investigation concludes in Spain
The outbreak stemmed from a Spanish business Margudis that sells pork products. The first outbreak of poisoning occurred on 5 August of this year in the province of Seville, although the first Listeria positives were not detected until 20 August.
According to the authorities, the investigations revealed that at least three of the people responsible for the products knew that a batch of meat products labelled in December 2018 was infected with Listeria but failed to inform the authorities. This led to more than 200 confirmed cases of poisoning by the bacteria.
The activity of the company investigated focused on Spain, however four members of a German family were affected, as was an English citizen who was in France, leading to EUROPOL’s involvement with the case.
The officers confirmed that the meat products from the company were the reason for the first outbreaks detected in Sevilla last August.
The investigation concluded with a total of eight people investigated. Of these eight investigated, six of them have been arrested. Two of the detainees are in provisional detention without bail. The authorities also destroyed 17 tonnes of product to prevent further spread of the disease.
