Couple jailed over illegal seafood sales
A couple who collected and resold discarded aquatic products has been jailed, according to prosecutors of Baoshan District.
The man surnamed Shi and his wife surnamed Wang, both from rural Anhui Province, came to Shanghai in February 2017. As they struggled to make a living in the city, the couple heard from a hometown acquaintance that they could scavenge discarded seafood products at wet markets and then resell them.
The pair turned their hands to the scheme at the aquatic wholesale market on Jiangyang Road N., where they picked up the remains of sea products tossed aside by vendors. Shi and Wang collected rotten, spoiled and inferior-quality seafood items — including dead lobster — which they sold at prices as low as 4 yuan (59 US cents) per kilogram, prosecutors alleged.
This illegal business was eventually discovered by security personnel at the market, who then called the police. Tests revealed that the items sold by the couple were rotten or otherwise unsafe to eat, according to the court.
The pair were found guilty of selling unsafe food items and each sentenced to six months with a one-year reprieve. They are also banned from the food industry for one year.
No cases of illness have been traced back to the couple.