The public prosecutor's office Kassel has initiated a preliminary investigation against the managing director of the Wilke Waldecker meat and Wurstwaren GmbH. It is determined because of the initial suspicion of negligent homicide and violation of food law, said a spokesman for the authority.
The goods of the hessian butchery Wilke are associated with two deaths in southern Hesse and 37 illnesses due to germ-laden sausages.
The procedure had been initiated due to the criminal complaint of the district Waldeck-Frankenberg, communicated the public prosecutor's office. The subject of the proceedings was above all the investigation of the two deaths.
Cause were according to a district spokesman Listeria, which were found in the meat of the company. In healthy people, Listeria can cause flu-like symptoms. For high-risk groups, including the elderly or pregnant women, the bacteria can also be fatal.
Read here: What you need to know about the sausage scandal
The consumer protection ministry in Wiesbaden had published a list of affected brands and trade names on Monday. If the products bear the "DE EV 203 EG" identification mark, they are affected. (Read here which brands are affected.)
The consumer organization Foodwatch had given the authorities until Tuesday a deadline to issue a customer list of the North Hessian sausage manufacturer. "We want to know what the authorities have known so far about the sales and delivery points of the recalled Wilke products," said Rücker.