Sue Hartigan <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> writes: Man Gets 30 Months in Rat Tail Scam > HAUPPAUGE, N.Y. (AP) -- A New Jersey scientist has been > sentenced to 30 months in jail for planting a fried > rat's tail in a McDonald's ``Happy Meal.'' > > Prosecutors said Michael Zanakis, 44, had hoped to > extort $5 million from the fast-food chain. He was > sentenced in federal court Thursday on a December > conviction for mail fraud, wire fraud and extortion. > > Zanakis, of Harding, N.J., took a rat's tail from the > medical research laboratory where he worked, had it > fried and then placed it in a package of french fries > he bought for his son at a McDonald's in Port Jefferson > Station on Jan. 15, 1996, prosecutors charged. > > ``He planted the tail and thought he would get away > with it,'' said Assistant U.S. Attorney Leonard Lato. > ``The next day he was on the phone with McDonald's. We > had him on tape demanding money.'' > > Zanakis claimed his 2-year-old son had bitten into and > swallowed part of the tail and threatened to go to the > news media with his allegations. > > Zanakis was also convicted of planting bits of grease > in a can of Coca-Cola Classic and then taking $4,600 > from the Coca-Cola Co. and the Coca-Cola Bottling Co. > of New York to keep quiet about it. > > His lawyer, Jeh Johnson, said Zanakis was disappointed > by the sentence and planned to appeal. > -- Two rules in life: 1. Don't tell people everything you know. 2. Subscribe/Unsubscribe, email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] In the body of the message enter: subscribe/unsubscribe law-issues
