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Chipotle subpoenaed as part of a federal criminal investigation
(Hollis Johnson)
Chipotle has been subpoenaed as part of a federal criminal investigation into a norovirus outbreak linked to one of its restaurants.
In an SEC filing on Wednesday, the company said it was served with a federal grand jury subpoena in connection with an official criminal investigation being conducted by the US attorney's office for the Central District of California and the US Food and Drug Administration's Office of Criminal Investigations.
"The subpoena requires us to produce a broad range of documents related to a Chipotle restaurant in Simi Valley, California, that experienced an isolated norovirus incident during August 2015," Chipotle says in the filing. "We intend to fully cooperate in the investigation."
A federal grand jury subpoena means prosecutors are gathering evidence to present to a grand jury, which will decide whether to make an indictment. The charges have not been specified. It was not immediately clear whether Chipotle itself was under scrutiny, but the company did not rule out in its filing that it could face penalties or liabilities in connection to the investigation.
The FDA declined to comment on the investigation. We've also reached out to Chipotle and the US attorney's office for the Central District of California and will update this post when we hear more.
Criminal investigations into outbreaks of foodborne illness are very uncommon, according to Dr. William Schaffner, an infectious-diseases specialist at Vanderbilt University Medical Center.
"Deliberately instigated foodborne illnesses are not unknown, but boy are they rare," Schaffner told Business Insider.
(Thomson Reuters)
The entrance to Chipotle Mexican Grill in San Francisco.
The norovirus outbreak linked to the Simi Valley, California, Chipotle restaurant sickened about 230 customers in August, according to public records obtained by Food Safety News.
Health inspectors visited the restaurant after the illnesses were reported and cited the company for violations in pest control, sanitation, and maintenance, according to the documents.
Inspectors also found that the restaurant was holding food at unsafe temperatures of below 135 degrees Fahrenheit, Food Safety News reported.
Norovirus is highly contagious and causes symptoms like stomach aches, nausea, diarrhea, and vomiting. It's the most common cause of foodborne illnesses in the US, with more than 21 million cases annually.
In addition to the norovirus outbreak, Chipotle has also been identified as the source of two E. coli outbreaks and another norovirus outbreak in Boston that together have sickened more than 200 people over the past several months.
NOW WATCH: A criminal investigation is underway at Chipotle
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