Man Charged with Poisoning Infants by Tampering with Baby Food

A severe indictment has been filed against Yan Shamla, 41, from Beersheba, for allegedly introducing prescription drugs into jars of "Prinuk" baby food and poisoning five infants. The indictment charges him with five counts of using dangerous poison and five counts of assaulting a helpless person. Prosecutors have requested his detention until the end of proceedings, stating that the incidents could have resulted in far more severe outcomes.

According to the indictment, between May and June 2026, Shamla possessed benzodiazepine prescription drugs, which are prohibited for children without expert approval. On several occasions, he crushed pills and inserted them into "Prinuk" baby food jars before resealing them and placing them on supermarket shelves in Jerusalem. In one instance, he placed two poisoned jars in a "Zol U'Vagadol" supermarket branch, with each jar containing the equivalent of approximately 17 or more prescription pills. A mother purchased one of these jars and fed the contaminated food to her 12-year-old daughter and two younger daughters, aged three and a half and eight months. The younger children collapsed and were hospitalized for several days, exhibiting severe benzodiazepine poisoning, ten times the maximum normal level.

In another incident, Shamla placed four poisoned jars on a shelf in the same supermarket branch. Three infants, aged approximately three years, 11 months, and three years, consumed food from one of these jars and soon began suffering from confusion, drowsiness, instability, and loss of muscle tone. They were also hospitalized with severe benzodiazepine poisoning.

Following these events, all the company's baby food products were collected from the supermarket, and additional poisoned jars were discovered. Two branches of the supermarket chain were temporarily closed due to public health concerns. The indictment also includes charges of attempted use of poison, attempted assault of a minor or helpless person, and theft. The prosecution emphasized the severity of the acts, noting the victims were infants and toddlers, the youngest being only eight months old, harmed by food intended for them.