In 1982, 7 people aged between 12 and 35 died suddenly in Chicago, Illinois, USA. The only thing that linked them was that they had all taken the over-the-counter painkiller, Tylenol.
An investigation into the deaths revealed that the Tylenol capsules were laced with Cyanide. To this day, it is still unknown as to how the Cyanide made it into the medicine.
On September 29th, 19982, 12-year-old Mary Kellerman wasn’t feeling well, so her parents gave her one over-the-counter extra strength Tylenol. Four hours later, she was dead.
27-year-old postal worker Adam Janus was rushed to hospital that same day but later died from unknown causes. He had also taken Tylenol earlier that day.
Adam Janus’ family gathered at his home to mourn, where his brother, Stanley Janus, and sister-in-law, Theresa, both took Tylenol from the same bottle as Adam and also unfortunately died.
Mary McFarland was another victim of the poisoning. Taking some Tylenol at work after getting a headache, when she collapsed and died shortly after.
Paula Prince was the final victim. She brought Tylenol on her way home from work to relieve her cold symptoms. She was found dead in her apartment, with the bottle of Tylenol open on her bathroom counter.
Police soon realised that the only thing each person had in common was the fact that they had each taken Tylenol shortly before their deaths and that they had been laced with Cyanide, a fast-acting poison. This sparked the manufacturer, Johnson & Johnson to issue a nationwide recall of the product, as well as warning every hospital and pharmacy in the country to stop using it.
The investigation revealed that the Cyanide contamination had not come from the manufacturers as each of the contaminated bottles had come from different suppliers. This led police to believe that the bottles had been contaminated by an individual who brought the bottles, added the Cyanide, and then placed them on the shelves at different stores, unbeknownst to the victims.
Although it was a highly publicised case, no one has ever been caught. The prime suspect is a man named James William Lewis. Lewis sent Johnson & Johnson a letter demanding they give him $1 million if they wanted the poisonings to stop. He was later charged with extortion and sentenced to 20 years in prison, of which he served 13 years. Although never charged with the poisonings, police believe he was most likely responsible.
Because of the poisonings, tamper-proof seals were used thereafter, and made a mandatory requirement a year later, and tampering itself was made illegal. A copycat received a 90-year prison sentence because of the new laws.
Sources:
https://allthatsinteresting.com/chicago-tylenol-murders
https://www.discovermagazine.com/health/the-tylenol-murders-changed-the-way-we-take-medicine
https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/cyanide-laced-tylenol-kills-seven
https://forensicsciencesociety.com/thedrip/the-cold-case-tylenol-murders
https://beyondthedash.com/blog/remembering/remembering-the-victims-chicago-tylenol-murders/7360
