The Taipei District Court yesterday sentenced Baolin Tea House (宝林茶屋) owner Li Fang-hsuan (李峰-hsuan) to one year and ten months in prison for negligent death, a first-instance ruling after a nearly two-year trial in which the case stemmed from a fatal food poisoning incident.
Replacement chef Hu Qingfu (胡清富) was sentenced to eight months for the same crime, chef Zhou Zhouhao (Sunday Hao) was sentenced to six months, and intern surnamed Ruan was sentenced to four months. The sentences of the latter two can be converted into fines of NT$1,000 per day.
The court dismissed the negligent injury prosecution against store manager Wang Shunde (Wang Shunde) and acquitted him of the remaining charges, citing insufficient evidence to prove he had authority or knowledge of the kitchen's food storage and handling practices.
Five people were indicted last January on charges of violating the Food Safety and Hygiene Management Act (Food Safety and Hygiene Management Act), wrongful death and negligent injury.
From March 19 to 24, 2024, six people died and 27 others fell ill after eating pasta contaminated with bacterial acid at the Xinyi A13 branch of Far Eastern Department Store.
The court found that Sunday Hao, Hu Thanh Phu and Nguyen stored the unsealed flat rice noodles on a low shelf near the floor drain and refrigerated them, causing the noodles to be contaminated with toxins.
Prosecutors said Li Fangxuan failed to implement strict food control procedures and failed to provide adequate employee training. Prosecutors had requested that he be sentenced to at least four years in prison.
The court said Hu Qingfu, who was in charge of kitchen operations, continued to store the opened packages of rice noodles at room temperature, mix different batches and reuse the plastic bags despite not knowing when the packaging was opened or whether the plastic bags were clean.
The court said that while Sunday Howe had stopped working at the restaurant before the contaminated meals were served, he had previously instructed employees that the small amount of rice noodles left in the opened packages did not need to be refrigerated.
The court said the intern had less responsibility because of her junior position and limited decision-making authority.
The court rejected requests for reduced sentences or suspended sentences because none of the four defendants admitted wrongdoing.
The judge said that although Baolin Tea Room had settled with some victims, the compensation came from Food Republic Taiwan Co and the insurance company of Far Eastern Department Store Xinyi Branch, not the individual defendants.
Taipei Mayor Chiang Wanan (Chiang Wanan) told reporters that the court should have imposed a heavier sentence and that the penalty under the bill was too light.
He said he has been discussing changes to the law with legislators and will support legal aid for victims' families.
Shen Boyang, Taipei mayoral candidate of the Democratic Progressive Party (Shen Boyang), said there was a gap between the prosecutor's request for a sentence and the court's verdict, but it was difficult to comment before reading the verdict.
He added that the sentencing was a judicial matter and the city's main task was to prevent similar incidents from happening again.
Huang Shujun, the only surviving serious victim, accused the city government of negligence.
She noted the failure to initiate temporary seizures of her boss's assets in advance, forcing families to turn to public compensation and private insurance, and that health officials' sampling efforts were incomplete.
She said she was "extremely angry" that Jiang Wanan used the tragedy to promote his political achievements, adding that she had only received a consolation payment of NT$12,000 and that compensation negotiations with the insurance company were still ongoing.
