Six jars of Hipp’s baby food “Carrots with Potatoes” were poisoned and distributed in several countries.Image: APA/APA
Investigators were intensively searching for the last jar of poisoned Hipp baby food. A suspect was arrested on Saturday. It is said to be a former employee of the manufacturing company. He denies the allegations.
May 4, 2026, 2:00 p.mMay 4, 2026, 2:17 p.m
Several jars of Hipp baby food laced with rat poison were circulated. This was evident from a blackmail letter that led to an international search for the affected glasses. On Saturday, the Austrian police reported a success: They arrested a man who is suspected of being behind the extortion attempt.
It is a 39-year-old Austrian, as the authorities announced. He could be tracked down in Salzburg. According to the Crown newspaper He is a father of three and a former employee of the Hipp company. He is said to have worked in middle management, but was laid off at the beginning of the year for economic reasons.
The suspect is also said to be in complicated divorce proceedings, which ultimately led him to send his former company a blackmail email.
Suspect wants to prove his innocence with a smartwatch
This is how the investigators are said to have finally discovered him. But the 39-year-old denies all allegations, as does his lawyer to the newspaper explained. He also never stayed in the Czech Republic, where some of the poisoned glasses appeared. He wants to prove this with the data from his smartwatch. In addition, the dismissal didn’t bother him much and he doesn’t hold any grudges. He also never claims to have written a blackmail email, as his lawyer explains. “He has nothing to do with the matter.”
However, rat poison is said to have been found during a house search. This is the same one that was discovered in baby food. The suspect is presumed innocent. He claims to have the rat poison for his agricultural lands in Slovakia.
One glass is still missing
There have been no charges so far. According to media reports, the first step is to check what consequences the dose of rat poison would have had if it had been consumed by babies. If it is fatal, attempted murder would be added to the charges of extortion and intentionally endangering the public.
Meanwhile, police continue to search for the last remaining jar of baby food that was tampered with and sold in the Austrian town of Eisenstadt. Five have been found so far, one has not yet appeared. The authorities had warned internationally against consumption. Signs of tampering can include damaged lids, a sticker with a red circle on the bottom of the glass or an unusual smell. (vro/sda)