[tchanson]

More likely that she brought it with her, although where she got it remains a valid question.

I did enjoy the "victimized by Wendy's again" bit though...

Tim


From the AP today:



Wendy's accuser no stranger to lawsuits


By Ken Ritter
Associated Press

April 9, 2005

LAS VEGAS -- The woman who says she bit into a human finger while eating chili at a Wendy's restaurant has a history of filing lawsuits--including a claim against another fast-food restaurant.

Anna Ayala, 39, who hired a San Jose, Calif., attorney to represent her in the Wendy's case, has been involved in at least half a dozen legal battles in the San Francisco Bay area, according to court records.

She filed a lawsuit against an ex-boss in 1998 alleging sexual harassment and sued an auto dealership in 2000, alleging a wheel fell off her car. That suit was dismissed after Ayala fired her lawyer, who said she had threatened him.

Speaking through the front door of her Las Vegas home Friday, Ayala said police are out to get her and were unnecessarily rough as they executed a search warrant at her home Wednesday.

"Lies, lies, lies, that's all I am hearing," she said. "They should look at Wendy's. Why are we being victimized again and again?"

Ayala acknowledged, however, that her family received a settlement for their medical expenses about a year ago after reporting that her daughter, Genesis, got sick from food at an El Pollo Loco restaurant in Las Vegas. She declined to provide any further details.

San Jose police have joined the Las Vegas police fraud unit in the investigation into how a 11/2-inch-long fingertip ended up in Ayala's bowl of chili at the San Jose Wendy's on March 22. Ayala said Friday she had not filed a claim against Wendy's, and it was unclear whether she had filed suit against the franchise owner.

The company maintains that the finger did not enter the food chain in its ingredients. The employees at the San Jose store were found to have all their fingers, and no suppliers of Wendy's ingredients have reported any hand or finger injuries, the company said.

On Thursday, Wendy's offered a $50,000 reward to anyone providing verifiable information leading to the positive identification of the origin of the finger.

Investigators would not say what they were looking for in the search of Ayala's house. Ken Bono, a family friend who lives at the home, said officers searched freezers, a picnic cooler in the back yard and the belongings of an aunt who used to live at the house.

San Jose police dismissed rumors that the finger might have belonged to Ayala's late aunt. However, investigators said they still were looking into the possibility that the missing finger was the result of an industrial accident or foul play.

"The simple fact of the matter is that the finger came from somebody. Where's that person at?" said Sgt. Nick Muyo, a spokesman for the San Jose Police Department.