Northern man charged after food scare in La Ronge

A 48-year-old man from Stanley Mission is facing charges after allegedly spreading rumours that food at a La Ronge business had been contaminated with HIV by a needle.
 
RCMP notified the Mamawetan Churchill River Health Region Tuesday. As a precaution, stores in La Ronge, Air Ronge, and Lac La Ronge Indian Band, including Sucker River and Stanley Mission, pulled certain food from their shelves.
 
Morton Cook was charged with public mischief, and obstructing a police officer after health officials determined there was no contamination of food.
 
Medical Health Officer for the health region James Irvine said the risk of contracting HIV from a food source is “extremely remote”.
 
He said the stomach itself does a good job of protecting the body from that situation.
 
“(The) usual mechanism for transmission, is injection drug use, sharing of needles between individuals or sexual contact,” Irvine said.
 
The region said there is no need to dispose of recently purchased food or return food products to the stores.

Cook will appear in La Ronge Provincial Court on Thursday.