Posted on 05/18/2005 11:04:04 AM PDT by Ramonan
The Las Vegas man whose severed fingertip ended up in a cup of Wendy's chili gave his mangled digit to a co-worker to settle a $50 debt -- but had no idea it would be used in an alleged scheme to swindle the fast-food chain, the man's mother said Tuesday.
San Jose police have refused to name the man whose finger they believe ended up in the chili. But the man's mother, reached by The Chronicle on Tuesday, said the finger belonged to her 36-year-old son, Brian Paul Rossiter of Las Vegas.
"My son is the victim in this,'' Rossiter's mother, Brenda Shouey, said in a telephone interview from her Pennsylvania home. "I believe he got caught in something, and he didn't understand what was going on.''
Rossiter lost part of his finger when his gloved hand was caught in a mechanical truck lift in December at a Las Vegas paving firm where he worked with James Plascencia, the husband of Anna Ayala, the woman accused of planting the fingertip in her cup of Wendy's chili.
Ayala claims she bit into a 1 1/2-inch human fingertip on March 22 while eating chili at the fast-food restaurant in San Jose. She was arrested a month later on felony charges of attempted grand theft for allegedly trying to shake down Wendy's International Inc. for a financial settlement in a scheme police say caused the fast-food chain to lose more than $2.5 million in sales. Her husband was arrested this month on unrelated charges of failing to pay child support in a previous relationship.
(Excerpt) Read more at sfgate.com ...
When I just heard this on the radio news, I asked myself this: Who the hell takes a finger for a $50 debt? Well, other than the mob.
What is the usual price on fingers as collectables these days?
Did he consider he might have got more than $50 on Ebay?
An opportunist connected to Ayala, apparently.
He gave the guy the finger for $50. I give people the finger all the time for free.
"If" he is the victim in all of this I have just one question. Why didn't he alert the authorities early on? He had to know that it just might have been his finger since he gave it to the husband of the fraud queen.
I can see an appearance on the Jay Leno show coming in this guy's future...
I love the fact that Wendy's didn't just shrink away on this one. They stepped up and challenged this crap as soon as they determined that they did nothing wrong. They went on the offensive and they won. Can you imagine if Mistubishi had gone on the offensive against Je$$e Jack$son? Maybe they wouldn't be paying $400M in extortion.
Asked to comment on if he'd sold any other parts of his body for profit, the man said "Mnnnnnnnhhgggggunnnnnhhnnnoooo!"
"Hold muh finger and watch this"
"Who the hell takes a finger for a $50 debt?"
The Yakuza take little fingers.
One of the reasons I chose Wendy's for lunch yesterday.
Can you imagine if Mistubishi had gone on the offensive against Je$$e Jack$son?
One of the reasons that I'll not buy a Mitsubishi. Somebody has to have the guts to stand up for what is right.
I sure hope that Wendy's goes after that lawyer who took the case. Maybe a disbarment of this shyster will make other ambulance chasers think twice before taking on bogus clients.
Russian Border Guard: What is your objective?
Fitz-Hume: My objective? Well, I object to taking a girl out you know and buying her dinner and she won't put out for ya.
Russian Border Guard: (Other Guard Slaps Fitz-Hume) Why are you here?
Fitz-Hume: Why am I here? Why are you here? Why is anybody here? I think it was John Paul Sarka who once said... How do you spell Sarka?
(Other guard Slaps Fitz-Hume again) Ouch! And let that be a lesson to you!
Russian Border Guard: Every minute you don't tell us why you are here, I cut off a finger.
Fitz-Hume: Mine or yours.
Russian Border Guard: Yours
Fitz-Hume: Damn!
(Other Guard Slaps Fitz-Hume again) Ow! Why are you still hitting me? He's gonna cut my fingers off.
Russian Border Guard: You have 30 seconds.
Fitz-Hume: You're not gonna start humming the theme to Jeopardy are you?
Russian Border Guard: We start with the little one.
Fitz-Hume: Alright, alright, I'm an American agent.
Russian Border Guard: And?
Fitz-Hume: And uh... and uh... and uh... they... they sent me here to... to... assasinate your premier
Russian Border Guard: I knew it, pay up comrad.
Yep, ole Anna planned the Wendy's extortion racket long before she actually tried it.
*groans*
Now THAT was FUNNY!
Nicely done!
Hubby takes advantage of what sounds like a less than brainy co-worker.
Ayala uses hubby's ill-gotten finger to pull the chili stunt.
She sold a mobile she didn't own.
She has a history of making claims against businesses.
Her hubby is arrested for failing to pay child support in a previous relationship. AND stealing his child's identity to avoid detection/garnishment.
I'm pretty sure I left a few out, too.
They sound like they have spent years running the scams honest people don't want to run.
Did she ever get as far as hiring a lawyer? I thought she just raised a big stink, but the cops and Wendy's immediately put so much heat on her, she backed down before filing a lawsuit.
I know which finger I'd use to settle a $50 gambling debt.
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