Mom Is Arrested For Selling Home Cooked Meals Through Facebook

A California stay-at-home mom never thought her passion for cooking and connection to social media could lead to jail time, but she now faces up to a year behind bars.

Mariza Ruelas is a part of the 209 Food Spot Facebook group, where she and fellow cooks were wrapped up in more than a yearlong investigation uncovering illegal practices.

What was the big crime these cooks were operating? The participants involved were coordinating a food facility and engaging in business without a permit.

In order to catch these crooks, San Joaquin County officials actually went undercover. A participant in the Facebook group (who turned out to be an undercover investigator) contacted Ruelas for a plate of her famous ceviche. But low and behold, it was all a ruse to ensnare this illegal rice ring.

Ruelas told local news she joined the Facebook group about two years ago. She would offer her own dishes; a tray of rice and beans, chicken stuffed avocados or ceviche about once a month. The Mom worked alongside her children aged 6-20, delivering the food in exchange for clothes, a birthday cake, or sometimes enough money to cover the cost of making the home cooked meals.

We didn’t see any harm in that,” Ruelas told The Washington Post. “There wasn’t anybody selling it daily. A lot of times, they were just getting back what they put into the ingredients.”

She added the purpose of the group was not to make a profit or carry out illegal business, but simply to build a strong sense of community.

Ruelas and 12 others were charged, though most accepted plea deals that included a year of probation, a $235 fine, and 40 hours of community service. Ruelas, however, decided to fight her charges because she is already on a tight budget and feels she could win. However, she is up against a year in jail for the two misdemeanors.

“I don’t write the laws, I enforce them. And the Legislature has felt that this is a crime,” San Joaquin County Deputy District Attorney Kelly McDaniel told KTXL. “Food prepared in a facility that does not inspect it creates a risk to the public.”

Perhaps Ruelas said it best when she told the Washington Post, “they took the time to be investigating for over a year now, but they can’t solve all these unsolved murders?”

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[Featured Image: LA Times]

Mom Is Arrested For Selling Home Cooked Meals Through Facebook is an article from: LifeDaily