The owner, branch manager, two chefs and an intern at the Xinyi branch of the Polam Kopitiam restaurant in Taipei were indicted with the charges after a fatal food poisoning incident in March 2024, said Kao I-shu, deputy chief prosecutor of the Taipei District Prosecutors Office, Focus Taiwan reported.
Bongkrekic acid, a toxin, was found among at least 33 customers who ate at the restaurant in March last year. Six customers died, the Office said, CNA reported.
Kao said the chefs and the intern had improperly stored flat rice noodles at room temperature, while the noodles should have been stored at low temperatures, The Straits Times reported. The chefs have also not taken proper measures to prevent cross-contamination, Kao added.
Meanwhile, the restaurant’s owner did not enforce food safety protocols at the restaurant, the prosecutor said, adding that prison sentences of at least four years are being considered for the restaurant’s owner and one of the chefs, and a more severe sentence has been suggested for the other chef.
Bongkrekic acid is produced by the bacterium Burkholderia gladioli. It is a toxin that can target the liver, kidneys and brain, resulting in vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pain and even death.