A Paqui One Chip Challenge chip is displayed in Boston on September 8, 2023.
Steve LeBlanc/AP
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Steve LeBlanc/AP
BOSTON — A lawsuit was filed Thursday against Hershey, Walgreens and several other companies in the case of a Massachusetts teenager who died after participating in a spicy tortilla eating challenge that went viral on social media.
Harris Wolobah, a 10th grader from Worcester, died on September 1, 2023, after eating a Paqui potato chip as part of the manufacturer’s “Potato Chip Challenge.” An autopsy found that Wolobah died after eating a large amount of chili extract and also had a congenital heart defect.
Harris died of cardiopulmonary arrest “in the context of recent ingestion of a food substance containing high concentrations of capsaicin,” according to an autopsy from the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner. Capsaicin is the ingredient that gives chili peppers their spicy taste. The autopsy also revealed that Harris had cardiomegaly, an enlarged heart, and a congenital defect described as “myocardial shunting of the left anterior coronary artery.”
“Today, we filed a wrongful death lawsuit on behalf of this wonderful family for the loss of their beloved son, Harris,” said Douglas Sheff, one of the attorneys representing the family in the lawsuit filed in Suffolk Superior Court. The lawsuit asks the court to award a judgment that includes punitive damages.
Sheff said the parties created “a perfect storm” that led to Wolobah’s death, including Paqui manufacturing the spicy chips and encouraging people to post videos of themselves eating the chips on social media while the lawsuit alleges Walgreens sold “toxic chips” to children.
“The defendants charged about $10 per chip, $10 for the chip that killed Harris, $10 for his life,” Sheff said. “It’s clear that these defendants knew full well that this chip was unreasonably dangerous? And isn’t this a clear marketing campaign designed to attract children to that danger?”
Lois and Amos Wolobah, Harris’ parents, attended the press conference but did not speak. But at one point, Amos Wolobah appeared to become emotional, and Lois appeared to blow a kiss into a projected photo of Harris.
An autopsy revealed that Harris Wolobah had cardiomegaly, an enlarged heart, and a congenital defect described as “myeloablative shunting of the left anterior descending coronary artery.” But Sheff maintained that this had nothing to do with his death.
“The chip is what killed him,” he said.
Paqui, a Texas-based subsidiary of Hershey Co., expressed sadness over Wolobah’s death but also cited “clear and prominent labeling on the chip stating that the product is not intended for children or anyone sensitive to spicy foods or with underlying health conditions.”
The Paqui chips, sold individually for about $10, come wrapped in foil in a coffin-shaped box that includes a warning that they are intended for “revengeful pleasure of intense heat and pain.” The warning notes that the chips are for adult use only and should be kept out of reach of children. After seeing reports of teens and others not following those warnings, the company said it was working with retailers to “voluntarily remove the product from store shelves by September 2023 and the One Chip Challenge has been discontinued.”
A Walgreens spokesperson said they had no comment on the lawsuit, while Hershey did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Despite the warnings, kids have had no trouble buying the chips, and there have been reports from across the country of teens getting sick after participating in the potato chip challenge. Among them are three high school students in California who were taken to the hospital and seven students in Minnesota who were treated by paramedics after participating in the challenge in 2022.
The challenge requires participants to eat a Paqui potato chip and then see how long they can go without eating or drinking water. Sales of the chips appear to come largely from people posting videos on social media of themselves or their friends taking part in the challenge. They show people, including children, opening the packaging, eating the chips and then reacting to the heat. Some videos show people gagging, coughing and begging for water, and the lawsuit cites numerous examples of people getting sick after eating the chips.
Harris Wolobah’s death prompted warnings from Massachusetts authorities and doctors, who warned that eating such spicy foods could have unintended consequences. Since the potato chip craze began, poison control centers have warned that concentrated doses of the chips could cause allergic reactions, difficulty breathing, irregular heartbeats, and even heart attacks or strokes.
Sheff said the lawsuit was intended to bring justice to Wolobah’s family and serve as a warning “to all who would endanger our children.”
