Former manager suspected responsible for poisoning baby food with rat poison

©Jose G. Ortega Castro via Unsplash

According to the Kronen Zeitung, the arrested suspect in the Hipp (baby foods) poisonings and attempted extortion is a former manager of the company. He is said to be a father of three who reportedly leads a luxurious lifestyle.

Rat poison was found in a number of jars of baby food made by German manufacturer Hipp in several European countries. In early May, it became known that Austrian police arrested a 39-year-old suspect in the state of Burgenland. Austrian public broadcaster ORF reported that the suspect allegedly extorted the baby food manufacturer and demanded €2 million worth of crypto currency.

Five poisoned jars have already been found in Austria, the Czech Republic and Slovakia. The jars were intercepted in time, even before they were consumed. However, a sixth poisoned jar is still being sought in Austria. And that is a battle against time, because in one of the jars sold in a supermarket in Eisenstadt, 60 kilometers south of Vienna, 15 micrograms of rat poison was found, which is a life-threatening dose. As a precaution, jars of Hipp baby food with carrot and potato were immediately removed from shelves in Austria, the Czech Republic and Slovakia. And the supermarket chain is trying to recall all jars of baby food sold with a recall. Police report that the suspected perpetrators put a white sticker with a red circle on the bottom of the tampered jars.

Hipp stressed that there was nothing wrong with the production process, and that it was therefore poisoning by an outsider.

It was the German police who tracked down the poisoning and put Austrian colleagues on the right track. The company is originally from Germany and has a large production facility in Bavaria. According to Hipp, there is no reason to believe that rat poison is present in products in other European countries.

Suspect apprehended

The main suspect Pavel S. (39) is currently detained in Austria and is being held separately in a closely guarded cell, the Justice Department reported. The man is suspected of poisoning baby food and extortion toward his former employer. For security reasons, authorities are keeping him under 24-hour camera surveillance due to fears of retaliation from fellow inmates.

According to the investigation, Pavel was fired in late March  at the Hipp plant in Gmunden, east of Salzburg "for economic reasons". On the day of his dismissal, he rescheduled his exit interview. The 11 a.m. appointment was moved to 1 p.m., while at 11:55 a.m., the first extortion message arrived with the threatening message "time is running out". Despite the loss of his well-paid position, he reportedly appeared at the office later that day remarkably calm and even cheerful.

Investigations at Hipp brought further clues that police believe point to Pavel. Indeed, the stickers affixed to the poisoned jars came from his workplace. During a search of his apartment, police found several empty Hipp fruit jars and several bags of rat poison. The investigation continues as the net continues to close in around the ex-manager.

©Jose G. Ortega Castro via Unsplash - illustration image of a baby at the dinner table