Carrie Pernula. (Hennepin County Jail)
A Minnesota woman sent an anonymous letter to her neighbors saying their children “look delicious” and asking to “taste” them because she was annoyed they were being too loud, police say.
Carrie Pernula, 38, was arrested last week, Champlin Police told WCCO-TV.
Police said she admitted to sending the letter, which asked, “May I have a taste?,” of her neighbors’ two elementary school-aged kids.
Here’s what you need to know:
1. The Note Was Mailed to Pernula’s Neighbor & She Posted It to Facebook
Carrie Pernula’s neighbor posted a photo of the letter to a community Facebook page. (Facebook)
The letter was mailed anonymously to Carrie Pernula’s Champlin, Minnesota, neighbor in September. The neighbor then posted a photo of the letter to a community Facebook group and contacted police. Investigators said they then tracked the letter back to Pernula, according to WCCO-TV.
The neighbor said on Facebook:
To the individual who sent this letter…The answer is NO! NO you may not have my children in any way, shape, or form. And beyond anything physical you may NOT rob them of the security and comfort they feel. The trust they have in other people, or the joy they experience on a daily basis because of who they are. You DO NOT have the right to try to steal this from them by sending an anonymous letter trying to rip their world apart. I will NOT let that happen. What you MAY do, since you were so formal in your letter to ask, is you MAY turn yourself into the police, or you MAY seek help for your sexual and/or homicidal urges. Either way, the children of this community are off limits.
Other community members responded, with one calling the letter, “disturbing and scary,” and urging the neighbor to go to the police.
The neighbor replied, “We were hoping the letter was sent to many people and it was completely random. That does not seem to be the case, but I agree that “tipping off” a family you want to hurt is more of a mind game than physical threat. I will call the people I need to today, but beyond that I will not play that game and live in fear.”
2. Pernula Was Angry the Neighbors’ Children Were ‘Being Kids,’ Police Say
Police told WCCO-TV that Pernula was angry about her neighbors’ children being too loud and leaving things in her yard.
“She was angry because the kids were leaving things in her yard and I think being a little noisy, being kids, the way kids are,” Deputy Police Chief Ty Schmidt said.
3. The Family Also Received Magazine Subscriptions Addressed to ‘Tasty Children’
Police said the family also started to get magazine subscriptions related to the letter.
“Instead of a name on the address label it said things like ‘tasty children’ along those lines,” Schmidt said.
4. Pernula Has Not Yet Been Formally Charged
(MySpace)
Pernula has not been formally charged yet, police said. She could be charged with gross misdemeanor terroristic threats and stalking.
The Champlin city investigator will determine if she is charged.
Pernula was released from jail on Monday.
5. She Works as a Data Entry Operator at a Medical Company
Carrie Pernula. (LinkedIn)
Pernula works as a forensic data entry operator for Medtox, a company in Saint Paul, Minnesota.
According to her LinkedIn profile, she previously worked as a contract assistant at a Minnesota drug company and worked for several years in human resources and other positions at Target’s corporate headquarters.
She is a graduate of University of Minnesota-Twin Cities with a degree in psychology.
