Food seller jailed after man dies eating groundnut meal

A restaurant owner in north-eastern England was
sentenced to six years in prison on Monday after
he was convicted of causing the death of
customer with a peanut allergy.

Mohammed Zaman, 53, was convicted of causing
the death of 38-year-old Paul Wilson, who
developed severe anaphylactic shock after he
started eating a takeaway meal from Zaman's
Indian Garden restaurant in Easingwold, North
Yorkshire, in 2014.

Teesside Crown Court found Zaman, who denied
all charges, guilty of manslaughter through gross
negligence, in what is believed to be a legal first.
He was also found guilty of employing illegal
workers.

Meanwhile, Zaman ran six restaurants in North
Yorkshire.

``He was heavily indebted and had used a
cheaper peanut-based powder to replace almond
powder in curries at the Indian Garden,’’
prosecutors said.

The Crown Prosecution Service said Zaman had
received several warnings about the potential
harm to people with peanut allergies, but he had
taken a reckless and cavalier attitude to risk. (NAN)