JoNel Aleccia of The Seattle Times reports that an outbreak of E. coli O157:H7 that closed the Matador restaurant in Seattle’s Ballard neighborhood last week appears to be linked to more illnesses in Washington and three other states, health officials said Monday.

In addition to the five illnesses linked to the Matador, two more Washington cases — one in Skagit County, one in Snohomish County — have been detected that have no connection with the Matador, a spokeswoman with the state Department of Health said Monday.

And three cases with the same genetic fingerprint have been detected in three other states, officials with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention indicated. One of those people visited Seattle and ate at the Matador in Ballard.

That’s a total of 10 cases of what are known as STEC infections — but just six of those cases appear related to the restaurant.

Such dispersed illnesses indicate that the problem might not lie entirely with the Matador in Ballard. The restaurant closed Friday after inspectors with Public Health – Seattle & King County said they temporarily suspended the firm’s food business permit to allow thorough cleaning and sanitizing.

“It’s looking more like a potential source, a contaminated product,” said Dr. Meagan Kay, a medical epidemiologist with King County.

State and federal officials have taken over the probe, she added.

Restaurant owner Zak Melang, who runs 14 sites in several states, said the problem may lie with an outside vendor. He urged health officials to investigate quickly to clear his name.

“It’s our reputation on the line,” he said Monday. “The questions aren’t stopping.”

Since 2010, the Matador has been cited 10 times for food-handling practices linked to higher risks of food-borne disease, according to public-health records. Six of those violations were for failure to keep food at the proper cold holding temperatures, which keeps bacteria growth in check, the records show.