Pasta la vista: 15 wheelbarrow loads of dumped spaghetti puzzle US town
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Piles and piles of spaghetti, macaroni and alphabet shapes were dumped beside a creek in Old Bridge, New Jersey.
PHOTO: NYTIMES
NEW YORK - US police have an unusual case to crack: Why were several hundred pounds of pasta illegally dumped next to a stream in a New Jersey town?
The macaroni mystery unfolded in Old Bridge, near New York City, late in April when a resident posted pictures of the oodles of noodles on Facebook.
The photos showed no sauce, no parmesan and no meatballs – just piles and piles of spaghetti, macaroni and alphabet shapes beside a creek in the woods.
“Fifteen wheelbarrow loads” to be exact, town business administrator Himanshu Shah told AFP in a statement on Friday.
He said employees from the Public Works Department and police officers were dispatched to the scene after seeing the images circulate online.
“We would estimate several hundred pounds of uncooked pasta were removed from the packaging and then dumped along the creek,” Mr Shah added.
That was sure to raise eyebrows in New Jersey, where 17 per cent of the population identify as having Italian ancestry.
“It looks like it was there for only a short time, but moisture did start to soften some of the pasta,” said Mr Shah, who added that the police were investigating.
Workers were able to load all of the food in under an hour and properly dispose of it.
Local media reported that the town of 65,000 people was abuzz with speculation about who might be responsible – a restaurant perhaps, or a cancelled caterer?
Social media users were quick to share their pasta puns.
“We should send the perpetrators to the state penne tentiary,” someone said on Reddit. AFP
