Spanish man receives insulting gas bill
When Antonio Bandín Moreno collected his post before heading off to work, he left it on the table and thought nothing more of it. It was only when his wife called him on his mobile that he discovered he had been the subject of a practical joke.
"Antonio, have you seen the bill from Gas Natural," she asked.
"Yes, but I didn't want to open it," he said, "Why would I? To go to work in a bad mood? Has it gone up much this month?"
But it wasn't the total on the bill that caused her to call.
While all the other information, from his personal identity number to his banking details, was correct, the bill was addressed to Antonio Gilipollas Caraculo, or Antonio D*ckhead *rseface.
Bandín, who works in the administration department of the San Jerónimo parish in Valencia, could not think of any reason why he would have been singled out.
He told his local paper, Levante: "I have no idea who it might have been ... I suppose it could have happened to anyone, and I think whoever did it either wants to get sacked or isn't well in the head."
Bandín does not think it can have been any kind of vendetta as he had not previously made any complaints against the company, and - until now - had had no problems with his bills.
The only thing that caused him to worry, he said, was that whoever had manipulated his surnames also had access to all his personal information.
It was this that made him decide to report it to the consumer affairs office, who recommended that he make a complaint to the local court, and contact the press.
A spokeswoman for Gas Natural said today that they had apologised to Bandín. She said the bills were sent out by a subcontractor, one of whose employees had decided to play a prank. The company said it would be taking "legal action" against the person responsible.
There was one upside to it all, said Bandín. Since his photograph appeared in the local paper, his mobile has not stopped ringing, with old friends calling to speak to the man now known as "Mr *rseface".
