Peanut butter salmonella outbreak brings federal charges against four

The conditions at Peanut Corporation of America — and the employees' alleged attempts to conceal them — appear more pronounced than most. Food and Drug Administration inspectors found remarkably bad conditions inside the processing plant in Blakely, Ga., including mold, roaches and a leaky roof. According to e-mail uncovered by congressional investigators shortly after the outbreak, Parnell, who invoked the Fifth Amendment to avoid testifying before Congress in February 2009, once directed employees to “turn them loose” after samples of peanuts had tested positive for salmonella and were then cleared in another test.

The indictment says the company misled its customers about the existence of salmonella in its product. It says the co-workers even fabricated certificates accompanying shipments.