Heroin Happy Meals: McDonald's Employee Arrested for Selling Drugs on the Job
Heroin happy meals were found at an East Pittsburgh McDonald's Wednesday when authorities arrested employee Shantia Dennis. She was apparently using her job as a cover to sell the drugs, telling her special customers in advance to use the code: "I'd like to order a toy."
The heroin happy meals may have never come to light if it weren't for an informant. Allegheny County police were informed that Dennis was selling heroin through the McDonald's, then followed the same procedure to set up a drug buy themselves.
Police officers visited the East Liberty McDonald's drive-thru after calling in advance. After using the special request "I'd like to order a toy" and paying $82 for a normally $2 meal, they received the fast food along with 10 small bags of heroin. This was enough evidence for them to go into the restaurant, arrest Dennis and search the premises.
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Authorities found another 50 bags of heroin in the 26-year-old employee's purse, $80 and marijuana in her bra. Store owner Iftikhar Malik is not currently believed to have known about the drug sales, Mike Manko, a spokesman for District Attorney Stephen A. Zappala Jr., told the Associated Press.
"The allegations related to this employee do not represent acceptable behaviors and are not consistent with my values," Malik said in a statement. "As such, we take these charges very seriously and we are fully cooperating with the authorities. We are also conducting our own thorough internal investigation."
However, another one of Malik's McDonald's employees in Murraysville, Pa. was busted earlier this year for dealing heroin as well.
