I was left in tears after my Shein order arrived with TWO additions – I was scared and thought terrorists were after me
A WOMAN was left stunned when she opened her Shein parcel to find not one but two unexpected additions.
Anna Elliott had ordered a few dresses from the clothing brand, but when they arrived she went from being a little confused to scared terrorists were after her.
The shocked 23-year-old claims she received a vial of blood and a tin of Mexican beans in the FedEx parcel, beneath her dresses earlier this month.
At first she wondered if it was a practical joke or a Halloween decoration that the clothing giant accidentally sent her.
On closer inspection however, the cleaning business owner realised the sample was from a laboratory and she immediately began to panic due to her life-long ‘major phobia’ of blood.
The ‘major biohazard’ even left Anna worried that she could be the victim of a biological terror attack of some kind or that it was targeted in some way to ‘expose her’ to something.
But Anna says FedEx told her the incident occurred due to an issue ‘in transit’ where her original Shein package was one of many which was ‘busted open’, leaving an employee to ‘guess’ where the miscellaneous items went and repackage them.
Anna, who is from Cookeville, Tennessee, US, said: “I’d ordered some dresses to wear for church. I’m opening my Shein order and taking out my dresses.
“Then I pulled out the can of beans and I thought ‘that’s weird’ because they don’t sell food, obviously.
“Under the can of beans was the blood vial.
Anna said she tried not to panic at first, and thought it could be “fake blood vials for Halloween and somehow it ended up in my bag.”
But once she realised that wasn’t the case her confusion quickly turned to panic.
“Since I was a kid I have had a major phobia of blood, like I’d pass out if I see blood so I’m literally the worst person for it to be delivered to,” she added.
“I really started freaking out, I was crying. I didn’t know if it was some kind of terrorist attack and they were trying to expose me to something.
“I didn’t know what it was. I was extremely scared.”
Anna called both her police department and the public health agency, The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, who reportedly informed her it was a routine cancer testing sample.
The NHS state that blood is usually seen by Jehovah Witnesses, which Anna is, to ‘represent life itself’ and therefore specimens must be ‘treated with respect, and disposed of with care’.
Now she hopes to warn others to stay safe and be more cautious when opening packages, as you never know what may really be in your order.
Anna shared a video of the ordeal online and said: “FedEx said somehow the packages got busted open and an employee didn’t know where everything went so they just threw it in a package and just guessed where it went and sent it to me.
“Why do FedEx employees not know how to treat blood samples?
“The director of the lab said it came from a cancer screening lab. They don’t screen people who have AIDS or hepatitis.
“Usually it’s just healthy people that are getting a screening to make sure they’re still in remission or everything is good with their health.
“Of course that doesn’t mean they don’t have some kind of disease I could be exposed to.
“Nothing like that’s ever happened to me.
“I’d warn others to always be careful really opening any package, before sticking your hand in it, dump it on the table first.
“Maybe even video themselves opening it so you have proof if something crazy happens.”
“I really started freaking out, I was crying. I didn’t know if it was some kind of terrorist attack and they were trying to expose me to something.”
Anna Elliott
Shein have been quoted in the media claiming to have launched an investigation into the incident and that it emerged the package had passed their quality control, leaving the facility with ‘only the SHEIN items ordered’.
FedEx have been quoted in the media apologising for the incident and saying they are taking ‘appropriate steps‘ to address the issue.
Gainesboro Police Department and The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have been contacted for a comment.