Sewing pins have turned up in cafeteria lunches three times at a Herndon middle school in recent weeks, according to Fairfax County police.
While police look for a suspect, Rachel Carson Middle School has increased the number of staff monitoring food preparation, according to police spokesman Lt. Rich Perez. No one ingested a pin in any of the incidents.
In the first case, a cafeteria worker found a pin in a serving of apple sauce on April 24, according to a police news release. Two day later, a teacher found one stuck through the foil top of a yogurt. Most recently, on Friday, a cafeteria worker found a pin in a serving of cranberry sauce.
Rachel Carson has 1,140 seventh and eighth grade pupils.
In Virginia, “food adulteration” ranks as a class three felony and carries with it a penalty of five to 20 years in prison.
“I’ve been here 19 years and this is the first time that I know of a food tampering case at a school,” Perez said Monday.
