Chipotle Subpoenaed, Faces Criminal Investigation, After Virus Outbreak

By MARC TORRENCE (Patch National Staff)

Bridgewater, NJ -- Chipotle, the popular burrito chain with locations in Bridgewater and Basking Ridge, has been rocked by a string of illnesses linked to its food and is now facing a criminal investigation in connection with a norovirus outbreak at one of its California restaurants, a company spokesman confirmed Wednesday to Patch.

• Chipotle can be found locally at 640 Commons Way, Bridgewater and 25 Mountainview Blvd, Unit 5, Basking Ridge

The company has closed stores across the country in the wake of norovirus and E. coli outbreaks at several locations nationwide that have sickened hundreds.

A subpoena demanding a wide range of documents relating to a norovirus outbreak at a Simi Valley, California, store was received last month, the Associated Press reported.

The Chipotle spokesman would not confirm any further details.

“As a matter of policy, we do not discuss details surrounding pending legal actions, but we will cooperate fully with this investigation,” Chipotle’s Director of Communications, Chris Arnold, said.

Illnesses linked to Chipotle food have been reported in the Pacific Northwest and across the Northeast, including in Maryland, New York and New Jersey.

At least 140 people, nearly all Boston College students, fell ill with norovirus in December after eating at a Chipotle near campus.

The Chipotle-linked outbreaks, which have been covered heavily in the national press, have led to a 30 percent drop in sales in December, according to the AP.

Norovirus is a contagious virus that can come from contaminated food, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. It causes inflammation in the stomach and intestines, which leads to vomiting and diarrhea.

The virus causes 19 to 21 million illnesses and 570 to 800 deaths per year, the CDC says.

E. coli, on the other hand, is a bacteria that lives in and around a healthy intestinal tract, according to the CDC. But dangerous E. coli can lead to “diarrhea, while others cause urinary tract infections, respiratory illness and pneumonia, and other illnesses,” the CDC says.

The CDC has counted 53 cases of E. coli linked to the Chipotle outbreak.