Hotel employee apparently tried to poison guests

The Costa del Sol is a popular holiday region in southern Spain.Image: imago images / robertharding

Vacation & Leisure

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Vacation – the time of year that many people look forward to in order to finally switch off. Enjoy the sun, indulge in culinary delights, no appointments, no obligations. But while guests are relaxing, hotels and restaurants are busy behind the scenes.

For the employees, this time does not mean relaxation, but pure stress. Long working days, low wages and often fixed-term contracts – the reality in the catering industry is tough for many. Added to this are the daily challenges: impatient guests, high expectations and little recognition. No wonder that nerves are sometimes frayed in this environment.

But when dissatisfaction turns into frustration, these sudden actions can turn into anything but professional. This is shown by an example from Spain, where an employee wanted to poison the hotel guests.

Holidays in Spain quickly become a horror trip for travelers

As consistent media reports, a 50-year-old waitress was fired from a hotel on the Costa del Sol in southern Spain – whereupon she apparently wanted to poison the guests.

Two guests observed the woman pouring a yellow liquid of bleach over fruit and yogurt in the dessert display. The woman then disappeared into the kitchen with a cleaning cart full of dirty dishes.

But the attentive guests reported their observation to the staff, whereupon the hotel’s security officer was called. He confronted his colleague.

Since the woman denied everything, the police were called. After their arrival, she was presented with two bottles of bleach and food contaminated with it – packed in Tupper boxes.

Spain: Hotel employees threatened with imprisonment after poison attack

But that’s not all: the waitress is said to have tried to poison guests a few days earlier. She is accused of lacing a milk bottle at the hotel bar with chemicals. However, this was not used.

Both actions took place in May 2023, but have only now become public because the public prosecutor’s office has now published that it is seeking a three-year prison sentence for those now accused.

They continue to argue about everything. According to the Spanish newspaperSur“Did she do that in the first place and when she got caught she said, ‘Are you telling me I’m crazy? How could I poison children?”

What is particularly bitter is that the incident described is said to have happened on the waitress’s last day at work. Instead of putting the situation behind her, she used her departure to express her frustration in cruel ways.