A male prankster has been arrested in connection with a social media post involving the spraying of pesticides on produce and other foods at a Mesa Walmart store.

According to police, Charles Smith, 27, entered the Walmart at 1955 S. Stapley Dr. on Dec. 19 intending to film pranks for social media platforms.

Instead, police said Smith grabbed a can of Hot Shot Ultra Bed Bug and Flea Killer from a shelf without paying for it and then sprayed the pesticide on various vegetables, fruit and rotisserie chickens that were available for purchase.

Smith recorded his face, the pesticide can and the act of him spraying its contents. He later posted the recording online.

  • cmnybo@discuss.tchncs.deEnglish
    260·
    2 days ago

    Yeah, that’s not a prank. That could have killed people if nobody noticed it.

    I hope they lock his dumb ass up for a long time.

    • kameecoding@lemmy.worldEnglish
      85·
      1 day ago

      From the last wave of pranks when people licked ice creams and put it back I have learned that messing with food is a federal crime in the US and is taken quite seriously.

      • stoly@lemmy.worldEnglish
        15·
        20 hours ago

        That’s because it’s an easy way to cause the death of children. People become angry, understandably.

      • Tyfud@lemmy.worldEnglish
        631·
        1 day ago

        As it should be. The regulations were significantly increased after the Tylenol murders in 1982. It’s also why we have no tamper things on many ingestible items.

      • Modern_medicine_isnt@lemmy.worldEnglish
        102·
        24 hours ago

        Uh oh, but will that department get the ax after inauguration? Might be time to do delivery only groceries. Where I live they come from special stores with no general public access.

        • MutilationWave@lemmy.worldEnglish
          2·
          20 hours ago

          I think they’d have a harder time getting rid of the FDA than the Department of Education, which sadly is in the crosshairs.

          • inv3r5ion@lemmy.dbzer0.comEnglish
            2·
            5 hours ago

            Honestly - and I’m asking this in good faith - why do we need a federal department of education? Every state has their own department of education and sets their own standards anyway. Is it not redundant? Do they do something special? The only thing I can recall that was federal education related was no child left behind which destroyed education and just led to children passing grades that can’t read, write or do basic math. And of course the federal student loan program, which is just the government profiteering off its youth.

            Note how I’m not asking why we need the FDA. There’s not even a question about how we need it. Arguably, we need more of it.