Horse meat seller to court over beef forgery

The director of the company responsible for the allegedly fraudulent sales of horse meat will be the only person tried in connection with the food scandal, the public prosecutor announced on Tuesday. The 45-year-old is accused of selling 300,000 kilos of horse meat labeled as beef from 2011 to 2013.

Selten, from Oss, Noord-Brabant is accused of written forgery. Horse meat was acquired from England, Ireland and the Netherlands, the prosecutor claims.

He will appear in a Den Bosch courtroom on March 24.

Prosecutors declined to pursue charges against the Selten’s sales director and an administrative employee who were also investigated. Selten was arrested in May 2013, and questioned over three days.

Upon discovery of the fraud, over 50 million kilos of horse meat was recalled as a precaution. Hundreds of restaurants and shops sold the mislabeled meat, including Ikea, whose famous Swedish Meatballs were filled with ground equine.

Selten’s company was declared bankrupt in Den Bosch in April 2013.