Police point finger back at woman in fast food chili-eating saga

SAN JOSE, Calif. -- Police think they know how the finger ended up in Anna Ayala's bowl of Wendy's chili -- because of a hoax. But they have yet to solve the other big part of the mystery: Whose finger was it?

Ayala was arrested in the alleged hoax Thursday at her home outside Las Vegas -- the latest twist in a case that has become a late-night punch line, taken a bite out of Wendy's sales and forced the fast-food chain to check its employees for missing fingers.

She was accused of attempted grand larceny, a charge authorities said relates to the financial losses Wendy's has suffered since Ayala made the claim. The loss to Wendy's restaurants in the Bay area is $2.5 million, according to the felony complaint against her.

Ayala claimed she bit down on the well-manicured, 1 1/2-inch finger in a mouthful of her steamy chili on March 22 in San Jose. She had hired a lawyer and filed a claim against the Wendy's franchise owner, but dropped the lawsuit threat soon after suspicion fell on her.

Ayala -- who is being held in a Las Vegas jail and has a history of bringing claims against big corporations -- has denied placing the finger in the chili.

When asked whether police considered Ayala's claim a hoax, David Keneller, captain of the San Jose police department's investigations bureau, said yes.

The Santa Clara County coroner's office also concluded that the finger "was not consistent with an object that had been cooked in chili at 170 degrees for three hours."

During the investigation, police and health officials failed to find any missing fingers among the workers in the restaurant's supply chain. Wendy's hired private investigators, set up a hot line for tips and offered a $100,000 reward for information leading to the finger's original owner. Employees who were working that day at the restaurant also passed lie-detector tests administered by police, the complaint says.

The furor caused sales at Wendy's to drop, forcing layoffs and reduced hours in Northern California. Joseph Desmond, owner of the local Wendy's franchise, called the ordeal a nightmare.

"It's been 31 days, and believe me it's been really tough," he said. "My thanks also go out to all the little people who were hurt in our stores. They lost a lot of wages because we had to cut back because our business has been down so badly."

Wendy's hopes Ayala's arrest persuades customers to return to its Northern California franchises. The company is offering a free "Junior Frosty" at its Bay Area restaurants.

Many loyal customers continue to support the Wendy's where Ayala made her claim.

Shortly after Friday's police news conference, Tom McCready headed into the restaurant and ordered two bowls of chili to go and a baked potato with chili on it.

"If they've got 10 fingers, it's OK with me," the San Jose retiree said about the Wendy's employees at the counter.

He said he and his wife have supported the restaurant since Ayala's claim, heading there more often and ordering the chili. His opinion of Ayala's claim: "It's a crock."

Ayala has filed claims against several corporations. She said she got $30,000 from a Mexican food chain after her 13-year-old daughter got sick at one of the restaurant, but the chain denied it paid her anything.

The complaint says investigators have found 13 civil actions involving Ayala or her children. At times, it says Ayala has settled cases for cash payouts before the lawsuits have gone to court.

Ayala also was arrested on a warrant alleging grand larceny -- a charge not related to the finger. The police chief said the charge stemmed from a 2002 incident in which Ayala allegedly tried to sell a mobile home in San Jose that she did not own. The victim lost $11,000.

Ayala's son denied the allegation.

"She didn't steal any money in connection with the trailer," Guadalupe Reyes Jr. said in brief comments to reporters while leaving the family's suburban Las Vegas house.