12 Nov 2018

Brisbane woman arrested over needles in strawberries

From Morning Report, 7:56 am on 12 November 2018

A 50-year-old woman has been arrested in Brisbane accused of putting needles into strawberries. The discovery of the contamination in September sparked a nationwide scare, devastating the Australian strawberry industry as growers were forced to dump tonnes of fruit. People stopped buying strawberries, supermarkets pulled them off the shelves and there were dozens of copy cat cases and false reports. The arrest is the result of an extensive police investigation. The woman faces seven charges of contaminating goods and is due to appear in court in Brisbane today. RNZ producer Emma Hurley spoke to ABC reporter Lily Nothling.