https://hips.hearstapps.com/vidthumb/56ca52aa-df86-4963-a9fd-
9da8173244b2/f477c19e-636e-4e92-977a-35c492573124.jpg?crop=1xw%3A1.0xh
%3Bcenter%2Ctop&resize=810%3A*&quality=70

The day after his father died, John Durrett of Kansas City decided to go
to the Hereford House in Leawood with his mother to have a peaceful,
relaxing dinner to plan final arrangements for his father.

As longtime customers, they had eaten at the steakhouse restaurant so
often they had a favorite table in the front accessible by a wheelchair,
Durrett said.

“Quite honestly, when we decided where to go eat the day after my father
died, we decided to go because it was my father’s favorite place,”
Durrett said.

“We thought Dad would love for us to go to the Hereford House.”

Dinner was around 5:30 p.m., and a few hours later, he became ill with
gastrointestinal issues.

He wasn’t horribly sick and didn’t see the need to go to a doctor.

“I would say on a scale of 1 to 10, the violent ratio was about mid-
range — five or six,” he said.

At the time, he thought he just had something that didn’t agree with
him.

Now he believes he might have eaten food that was intentionally
contaminated.

A week ago the Johnson County District Attorney’s Office announced that
they had charged 21-year-old Jace Christian Hanson of Kansas City with
one felony count of unlawfully adulterating or contaminating food at the
restaurant at 5001 Town Center Drive in Leawood’s Town Center Plaza.

The alleged crime occurred between between March 26 and April 25, police
said.

Since then, little has been released about the crime. Prosecutors
haven’t said how Hanson allegedly contaminated the food, but confirmed
that some bodily fluid was introduced into the food.

Officials have not publicly verified the type of bodily fluid. Being a
frequent diner at the restaurant, Durrett checked to verify the last
time he ate there.

His father, Overton Durrett Jr., died on April 1. He knew that he and
his mom went there the next day.

“If the news story hadn’t broken, I probably would not have put two and
two together,” he said.

“I wouldn’t have connected the dots.” A woman, who declined to be
identified for this story because of concerns for her safety, called The
Star on Tuesday, saying she and four other family members had eaten from
the restaurant during that time period.

One of them got ill afterwards. The woman is “frustrated and just kind
of scared” because of the unknowns surrounding the case.

Since the news broke, she said it’s what she has been thinking about. It
has also affected her desire to eat out at other restaurants.

“I don’t think I’ve cooked this much in my life,” she said.

‘DEATH PENALTY TO OUR TRUST’

The incident has left Durrett questioning his family loyalty to the
restaurant, which goes back years.

After his father slipped and fell outside the restaurant and was
hospitalized roughly a year ago, they never assigned any blame to the
restaurant and continued to eat there. “Good lord, how can they pay us
back like this for years of loyal frequenting to their restaurant?” he
said.

At the end of last week, Durrett called the restaurant letting them know
he had eaten there and that he believed he was a victim of food
poisoning.

He told the manager at the time that he wanted a refund.

“They essentially said, ‘Well, we’re not going to do that,’” Durrett
said.

“And essentially, that was the end of the whole conversation.”

How a company responds to a crisis shows its character, Durrett said.

It’s unbelievable to him that the restaurant won’t be refunding people
their money.

“It’s a death penalty to our trust,” said Durrett, who doesn’t think
they’ll be going back.

“It’s gone, forever.”

The Star reached out to Hereford House asking for comment on Durrett’s
comments and whether it planned to reimburse customers for their meals.

The restaurant replied with a written statement, which didn’t address
whether it would refund money to its customers.

“We have been heartened by messages of support we have received from the
community regarding the tampering of food at our restaurant,” the
Hereford House said in a statement.

“This is an upsetting situation for our customers and for all of us
connected to the restaurant.“ The restaurant continued by saying it has
always maintained high standards of operation and once it learned of the
tampering it destroyed all the food and thoroughly cleaned and sanitized
the kitchen and adjacent areas.

“We appreciate the support of the community and look forward to
continuing serving everyone,” the Hereford House said.

PUBLIC NOTIFIED DAYS AFTER ARREST

After receiving a tip, the Federal Bureau of Investigation contacted
Leawood police about possible intentional food contamination, Johnson
County District Attorney Steve Howe said.

The investigation into the tip led police to Hereford House, and Hanson
was arrested at 2 p.m. April 25. Hanson, who worked part-time at the
restaurant at 5001 Town Center Drive in Leawood’s Town Center Plaza, was
booked into Johnson County jail where he is being held on $100,000 bond.

Prosecutors charged Hanson the next day. When prosecutors announced
Hanson had been charged the following Tuesday, they asked customers who
fell ill after eating at the restaurant during that period to contact
the Leawood police at tips@leawood.org or 913-266-0696.

Nearly 140 people had contacted police regarding the investigation,
which is continuing, said Capt. Brad Robbins with the Leawood Police
Department.

Howe said they believe that the investigation will probably lead to
additional charges. Hanson’s next court appearance is scheduled for June
6.

https://www.kansascity.com/news/local/crime/article288286610.html