Bolivia: Human Finger found inside a Hamburger

The case of a woman in Bolivia, who found a finger in a hamburger that belonged to one of the restaurant chain workers, generated controversy in the country and led to the opening of an investigation for an attack on public health.

This event happened in the eastern city of Santa Cruz, when a woman asked for a “magnificent hamburger” and while she was eating she found a human finger.

This situation was denounced by the diner on Sunday through social networks, where she shared some photographs of the hamburger and the finger she found, and immediately the information went viral.

“It has been verified that the hamburger has been sold in that establishment and that that hamburger had the rest of a finger of possibly a worker who lost two fingers last Friday,” the Deputy Minister of Consumer Defense, Jorge Silva, explained to Efe.

According to preliminary information, one of the workers who was in charge of grinding the meat used in the 20 branches of the fast food restaurant made a movement while the machine was turned off that caused the grinder to cut off two of his fingers, Silva commented.

The worker was transferred to a private hospital to be treated for the dismemberment.

The man was preparing between 45 to 80 kilos of meat that is used in hamburgers and, according to the restaurant’s version, that batch was discarded, the vice minister said.

Even so, it is necessary to inquire under what circumstances they discarded the meat and if there is any evidence of that action, he said.

The place where the finger was found was closed and the office of the customer and consumer service center in that city will carry out checks at the other branches, Silva said.

The Public Ministry opened an ex officio process for an attack against public health to investigate this fact and the vice ministry headed by Silva will monitor the investigation, he reported.

“We are appearing to investigate this fact and punish those responsible, since the Penal Code establishes a penalty of up to 10 years in prison,” Silva emphasized.

THE RESTAURANT

After the controversy, the restaurant in question issued a statement in which it noted that throughout its 21 years of experience they have worked “in faithful and strict adherence to all health, safety and food safety regulations.”

“Faced with a fortuitous incident that occurred with one of our employees, the company immediately activated all emergency protocols, prioritizing the health of our worker at all times, who is already in the recovery stage,” the statement reads.

It also indicates that the “internal investigation protocol” was activated to determine how “a foreign element” arrived at one of its branches.

“At this moment, our company is collaborating with all the competent authorities so that this fact is fully clarified for the tranquility of our suppliers and customers”, ends the bulletin.

The Ministry of Labor ordered the paralysis of operations in the area where hamburgers are made until they can prove that their workers are trained in handling these machines.

In the verification of this state portfolio, it was possible to show that this space is “unsafe” and that there were at least three other incidents in which workers lost their fingers.