A recent DNA report obtained by the police has revealed that the human finger discovered in an ice cream by a doctor in Malad belonged to 24-year-old Omkar Pote, an employee of the Fortune Dairy factory in Indapur, Pune. Pote had lost the tip of his finger on May 11 while working on the production line filling ice cream cones under the Yummo brand name.
The Malad police, following the discovery, collected Pote’s DNA samples and sent them to the forensic science laboratory in Kalina. The report, received on Thursday, confirmed that Pote’s DNA matched the finger found in the ice cream. Additionally, blood sample reports indicated that Pote did not carry any diseases that could endanger consumers who may have consumed ice cream from the affected batch.
Senior Police Inspector Ravi Adane of the Malad police station commented on the negligence displayed at the factory, stating, “It is negligence on the part of the employee and the supervisors at the factory that they let the contaminated ice cream batch be packed and shipped to consumers.” Legal action under section 41 of the Criminal Procedure Code is being pursued against those responsible, with potential consequences of up to seven years’ imprisonment.
The incident came to light when Dr. Brandon Serrao discovered a piece of human finger in an ice cream cone he had ordered online on June 12. Subsequently, a case was filed against officials of Yummo ice cream, and investigations led police to the Fortune Dairy factory in Indapur, where Pote was identified and samples were collected.
In response to the incident, the Fortune Dairy unit in Indapur has been served a stop-work notice by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI).
