Mom Alleges She Contracted Intestinal Parasite from KFC; Chain Denies Claim

Mom Alleges She Contracted Intestinal Parasite from KFC; Chain Denies Claim
A KFC stock photo AP Photo/Andy Wong, File
Jack Phillips
Updated:

An Australian woman said she was left violently ill after allegedly consuming a piece of chicken that she claimed was undercooked, giving her an intestinal parasite.

Alyssa Lee, a 25-year-old mother of one, said she purchased the chicken at a KFC establishment near Townsville, Queensland, on April 16 for her family, the Daily Mail reported on July 19.

A spokesman for KFC told the publication that they don’t believe the chicken caused the woman’s sickness. “We are sorry to learn of Mrs Lee’s illness, but we do not believe this was caused by KFC,” the spokesman said.

But Lee, however, said she had eaten two pieces of chicken before she noticed a piece was undercooked as she was about to give it to her 2-year-old son.

Lee said she attempted to contact the KFC establishment but was unable to reach someone who could talk to her.

“Finally on the second day of trying someone answered and they asked me to send through the pictures,” she said. “I sent them through to a mobile number and didn’t receive a reply so I went down to the store.”

A manager asked her if she wanted a refund, Lee recalled.

The woman said the manager confirmed the chicken piece was a thigh, telling her that the “chef hasn’t popped the bone and then she screwed the incident form up.”

Lee said she got violently sick from the alleged undercooked meat.

“When it was worst, I had my head in a toilet bowl most of the day,” she was quoted as saying by the publication. “If I wasn’t in the toilet I was in bed. I had to ask friends and family to look after my son because I couldn’t.”

Lee was diagnosed by a doctor with intestinal infections sapa virus, noro virus, food poisoning, as well as Giardia Instestanils, which is a type of parasite.

Months later, Lee claimed that she is still suffering symptoms from the alleged food poisoning.

The woman said she is now planning to file a lawsuit against the chain, but she also wants to make sure that something like this doesn’t happen again.

“I didn’t do this for money. I’ve never claimed for compensation in my life. No one in my family would do this for money,” she said. “I want to prove negligence because what is happening is disgusting. Since my food poisoning, I have heard so many worrying similar stories.”

Elaborating, Lee said she was ill for three weeks and took “three rounds” of medication.

Three months later, she said, “I still experience bouts of nausea and vomiting now,” she told the Mail.

In a post on Facebook, Lee said, “This post has been approved by my solicitor and does NOT fall under defamation/slander. I was absolutely sure to run all of this past him first. I currently have a lawsuit happening as I purchased raw chicken back in April which made me incredibly sick for weeks. “I contracted 3 stomach infections and a parasite. Spent weeks fighting these off, had to take medication I was allergic to as it was the only one that would get rid of the parasite, which I had to have 3 rounds of,” as reported by the Sun Best.
KFC store sign. (Ben Stansall/AFP/Getty Images)
KFC store sign. Ben Stansall/AFP/Getty Images

Her post was then taken down.

Glenn Brown, a solicitor from Shine Lawyers, told The Sun that he is representing Lee. A claim was sent directly to the store, but he would take the matter to court if it is not resolved.

KFC Responds

A spokesman for KFC’s Australia branch said the firm doesn’t believe she contracted food poisoning from the chain’s chicken.

“As this is a legal issue, we cannot comment further,” the spokesman said, adding, “We are sorry to learn of Mrs Lee’s illness, but we do not believe this was caused by KFC.”

Jack Phillips
Jack Phillips
Breaking News Reporter
Jack Phillips is a breaking news reporter who covers a range of topics, including politics, U.S., and health news. A father of two, Jack grew up in California's Central Valley. Follow him on X: https://twitter.com/jackphillips5
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