News

Sprite not to blame for poisoning: Police

By Wu Yiyao (China Daily)
Updated: 2010-03-17 07:54

A man who suffered mercury poisoning that he claimed was caused by a can of Sprite, lied about the real origin, the Beijing Police Bureau said.

Ma Sai, 21, and the person allegedly responsible for the poisoning, a 28-year-old woman surnamed Liu, have both been put under criminal detention, police said.

Ma was hospitalized with mercury poisoning after eating at a restaurant on Nov 7 last year. Police said Ma was dining with Liu and Liu's cousin when he was poisoned.

A police brief, released on March 15, said Ma knew Liu was responsible for the act, but agreed to conceal the truth.

The bureau told METRO the case is currently under investigation. Police refused to reveal details about the motive or method of Liu's actions and the relationship between Liu and Ma.

Reportedly, Ma and Liu are both workers at the Xuanwu environment and sanitation bureau. Liu visited Ma when he was hospitalized, according to Beijing News.

A similar case of mercury poisoning, involving a can of Sprite in Tongzhou district, is still under investigation.

Wang Haoyong, a 13-year-old student, was hospitalized with mercury poisoning after drinking a can of Sprite on Jan 17.

Police later found a broken thermometer at Wang's home. Wang told police he had cleaned up the spilt mercury after breaking the thermometer on the night of Jan 16. Police said details on the case could not be released yet.

Chen Yi, a spokesman with Coca-Cola China, said the company was happy to hear the result of the investigation on the case involving Ma and Liu. He said the result proved Sprite drinks were not contaminated during the manufacturing process and consumers could trust the brand.

Reportedly, Coca-Cola paid 20,000 yuan for Ma's treatment and another 20,000 yuan for Wang's. Chen declined to comment on this claim.