Luzerne County Man Sentenced After Tampering with Consumer Products

The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that Joseph Bartorillo, age 60, of Larksville, Pennsylvania, was sentenced to 24 months of imprisonment by Senior United States District Court Judge Richard P. Conaboy. Judge Conaboy further ordered that Bartorillo serve a two-year term of supervised release and pay a $1,000 fine and $3,647 in restitution to the Pennsylvania State Police crime lab.

The individual victims who purchased the contaminated yogurt will be eligible for restitution as part of the state court case against the defendant.

According to United States Attorney Peter J. Smith, Bartorillo was charged in a Felony Information in October 2011 with tampering with a consumer product that affected interstate commerce. Between July 1, 2010, and May 31, 2011, Bartorillo intentionally tainted food containers by injecting the containers on multiple occasions with his own semen.

At the time the charges were announced, U.S. Attorney Smith stated that all of the tainted containers were recovered, as they had all been in the possession of a limited and known number of people. The tainted containers present no danger to the public.

Bartorillo pleaded guilty in November 2011.

The investigation was conducted by agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation with the assistance of the Wyoming County District Attorney’s Office-Detective Unit. Prosecution was handled by Assistant United States Attorney Michelle Olshefski.