Thompson put him in charge of the investigation to get TV time. As the 40th anniversary of the 1982 Tylenol murders approaches, investigators are working with prosecutors on a now-or-maybe-never effort to hold a longtime suspect responsible for the. (Stacey Wescott / Chicago Tribune). Thats because nobody was keeping track of who was buying cyanide, Wolnik said. And you had a lot of very experienced, very intelligent, very resourceful people thinking about this all the time, thinking about angles, thinking about ideas, testing them and implementing them wherever we possibly could. Members of the Illinois State Police join, as well. But others, including Lane, found it immensely helpful and from his perspective ultimately accurate. Someone, police hypothesized, must have taken bottles off the shelves of local grocers and drug stores in the Chicago area, laced the capsules with poison, and then returned the restored packages to the shelves to be purchased by the unknowing victims. In one instance, someone reported that a chemistry professor at the University of Illinois at Chicago had been bragging about access to labs with cyanide. Complaining of a sore throat and a stuffy nose, her parents gave Mary one Extra Strength Tylenol capsule and let her stay home from school. The decision cost the company more than $100 million, an enormous amount in 1982. What are you giving this story for? So they ran him off the stage and I got up there.. The substance was grainier than the untainted Tylenol on the left. Seven people between 12 and 35 died after ingesting cyanide-laced Tylenol pills in the Chicago area in 1982. A native of the south suburbs, Gutowski received a master's degree in public affairs reporting from the University of Illinois at Springfield and is a graduate of Southern Illinois University. Siekmann didnt wear gloves. Marquette 10 is one of a thousand reasons why theres tension, personal jealousy, personal ambition, jurisdictional turf fights. The FBI put about three dozen agents on the case, under the premise that the agency needed to determine whether Johnson & Johnson had violated federal law by failing to list potassium cyanide among the active ingredients in Tylenol. Within a year, and after an investment of more than $100 million, Tylenols sales rebounded to its healthy past and it became, once again, the nations favorite over-the-counter pain reliever. She would be the seventh and final person to die from taking the poisoned medication. With no apparent motive and little evidence to go on, it was a tough task. Prince was officially declared dead by the Medical Examiner's office at 6:45 p.m. Investigators discovered a bottle of Extra-Strength Tylenol in her bathroom with one capsule missing and a. Elk Grove Village Detective Michael Severns said investigators were so intent on chasing leads that they at times lost sight of the grieving families. These other men were all worried about his chances. He also would have a history of animal cruelty, Lane told the Tribune. Kasia Janus also always verifies products are properly sealed before she buys anything at stores, she said in a recently published series of interviews with CNN that described the gut-wrenching legacy left behind for her by the unsolved Tylenol killings, which made tampering with medications as well as other consumer goods a federal crime but remain unsolved. Details about the seven victims, how they obtained the tainted bottles and their final moments were outlined in a confidential police memo obtained by the Tribune. Lab technicians Nlada Marzette, left, and Lynn Pilaggi inspect the contents of Extra-Strength Tylenol capsules for cyanide contamination at the Illinois Department of Public Health in 1982. Over the next few days, three more strange deaths occurred: 35-year-old Mary McFarland of Elmhurst, Illinois, 35-year-old Paula Prince of Chicago, and 27-year-old Mary Weiner of Winfield, Illinois.. The likelihood that the same person could have put cyanide into different batches manufactured at different times in different places was logistically zero.. I think we ended up charging that guy with a misdemeanor, some disorderly conduct or some nonsense, he said. Roger Arnold worked at a jewel warehouse with the father of one of the victims named Mary Reiner. Given the totality of the circumstances, some thought it unusual for the Illinois attorney general to lead the investigation. In the first year alone, the task force used it to track more than 35,000 individuals and 15,000 companies contacted as part of the investigation. By days end, however, tainted capsules would be blamed for two deaths in neighboring DuPage County, broadening both the scope of the investigation and the threat to the public. Subscribe to Heres the Deal, our politics But she said years of therapy and yoga have helped her overcome her anger and guilt, and shes hopeful there will be justice in the killings of her father as well as her aunt and uncle. And wherever they fell on the issue, that position hasnt changed much over the past four decades. However, investigators believe circumstantial evidence is enough to make this a "chargeable" case, but that decision would have to come from prosecutors, according to documents reviewed by the Chicago Tribune. To its credit, the company took an active role with the media in issuing mass warning communications and immediately called for a massive recall of the more than 31 million bottles of Tylenol in circulation. They looked at accused shoplifters, including a man charged with attempting to steal 28 Tylenol bottles from a Wheaton pharmacy in August. Illinois state police and FBI supervisors did most of the talking at that first meeting, several attendees told the Tribune. https://www.pbs.org/newshour/health/tylenol-murders-1982, Why Eleanor Roosevelts civics book for kids is making a comeback. And he grabs the pills, picks them up in his hand, dumps a whole bunch of them in his hand and starts sniffing, Ford recalled. The substance was grainier than the untainted Tylenol on the left. Investigators first considered whether the tampering could have occurred at the manufacturing plants. The Chicago detectives shared that worry. Among them was Lane, a well-respected federal agent who would help put away all kinds of criminals during his nearly 30-year career, including mob boss Sam Carlisi, former Illinois Gov. Local police departments and states attorneys offices have been trying to crack the case for 40 years. Was Charles Dickens the first celebrity medical spokesman? Joe Murphy told NBC Chicago last year. Investigators also collected more than 200 cyanide samples from Chicago-area businesses, facilities and institutions and sent them to an FDA research laboratory in Cincinnati. Beginning on Sept. 29, 1982, and over the next week, seven people were murdered in the Chicago area after unknowingly taking Tylenol pills that were spiked by a killer. This Oct. 18, 1982, column by Tribune columnist Bob Greene included specific details at the request of the FBI, such as the home address of Tylenol victim Mary Kellerman. Retired FBI agent Roy Lane Jr., shown in August, is the only member of law enforcement who has been part of the Tylenol investigation in its entirety. Seven people in the Chicago area were killed that year by Tylenol that had been poisoned with potassium cyanide. He is the director of the Center for the History of Medicine and the George E. Wantz Distinguished Professor of the History of Medicine at the University of Michigan and the author ofThe Secret of Life: Rosalind Franklin, James Watson, Francis Crick and the Discovery of DNAs Double Helix (W.W. Norton, September 21). "While this tragic incident remains unsolved, this event resulted in important industry improvements to patient safety measures including the creation of tamper-resistant packaging.". In reality, some task force members still accuse their colleagues of secretive behavior 40 years later. And we were able to analyze the cyanide and show that it was not the same (cyanide at the plant) as cyanide in the capsules., Lab technicians Nlada Marzette, left, and Lynn Pilaggi inspect the contents of Extra-Strength Tylenol capsules for cyanide contamination at the Illinois Department of Public Health in 1982. We had an absolute tsunami of Tylenol bottles. In this op-ed, he reflects on his experiences leading the public health response to the Tylenol murders of 1982. I realized I was in the deep end of the pool, he said. The attorney general largely stopped campaigning after joining the task force, but his face was on TV every night. Unfortunately, each victim swallowed a Tylenol capsule laced with A lethal dose of cyanide. Former Illinois Attorney General Ty Fahner stands on the former site of the Tylenol task force headquarters in Des Plaines, now an empty parking lot. Jose Rosa, right, was one of hundreds of Chicago city employees and volunteers to distribute warnings about cyanide-laced Tylenol in fall 1982. Other copy-cat poisonings, involving Tylenol and other over-the-counter medications, cropped up again in the 1980s and early 1990s but these events were never as dramatic or as deadly as the 1982 Chicago-area deaths. Former Chicago police Detective Jimmy Gildea, shown at his Chicago home in July, investigated the death of Tylenol victim Paula Prince. I dont want to get off here, he quietly said. Meanwhile, a 12-year-old child named Mary Kellerman had also died suddenly in another Chicago suburb after taking an Extra-Strength Tylenol. Within a week, her death would panic the entire nation. Forty years after that terrifying period in September 1982, investigators say new evidence and a potential motive may be enough to finally solve the case. The Tylenol murders would soon spur the development of plastic seals and tamper-evident packaging. Police departments and fire stations began collecting bottles, as well. You know, its a hackneyed phrase, but we left no stone unturned., Former Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeremy Margolis, shown in his Chicago office in July, was part of the original Tylenol task force in 1982. Employees of the Chicago City Health Department continue to test Tylenol medication for the presence of deadly cyanide at the Department's lab on Oct. 7, 1982. Investigators took the funeral guest books and jotted down license plates, then entered names into a newly developed computer program that allowed them to cross-check for anyone attending multiple memorials, according to the state police report. A theory emerged: What if the Mad Poisoner was actually the Unabomber? (Stacey Wescott / Chicago Tribune). The bottle's cap was easily opened. he answered. I dont think that bore fruit at all.. But for something like this, for looking at a pill, it never would even cross our mind., Former DuPage County Coroner Pete Siekmann, who in 1982 was a deputy coroner, handled the Tylenol bottles from Mary "Lynn" Reiner and Mary McFarland. But something more sinister was afoot when Kasias paternal uncle Stanley Janus and his wife, Theresa Tarasewicz Janus, each took pills from the same Tylenol bottle that Adam had bought in an attempt to fight headaches. Jose Rosa, right, was one of hundreds of Chicago city employees and volunteers to distribute warnings about cyanide-laced Tylenol in fall 1982. newsletter for analysis you wont find anywhereelse. This Oct. 18, 1982, column by Tribune columnist Bob Greene included specific details at the request of the FBI, such as the home address of Tylenol victim Mary Kellerman. He investigated the Tylenol poisonings in the Janus family and later served as police chief in Island Lake. President Reagan wanted the FBI in the investigation, retired FBI Special Agent Roy Lane Jr. told the Tribune. At first, the story focused in the Chicago/Cook County . (Charles Osgood / Chicago Tribune). Medicare Pharmacy employee Mary Butler, right, shows a box of Extra-Strength Tylenol to Officer Michael Miljan in Arlington Heights. Tylenol murders victims Among the victims there were three from the same family, as Adam Janus, aged 27 collapsed after ingesting extra-strength Tylenol and was rushed to the hospital where he died. It was then that Mary Kellerman, a 12-year-old girl from Elk Grove Village, a suburb of Chicago, told her mother and father about her symptoms. All Rights Reserved. Written by a high-ranking Illinois state police supervisor in April 1983, the document describes the wide net authorities cast in the hopes of solving the mystery. Chicago police Detective Charlie Ford, assigned to the Prince murder, recalled being stunned when Cook County Medical Examiner Robert Stein showed up at the victims Old Town condo and immediately asked to see the Tylenol. (Stan Policht / Chicago Tribune). Fahner, as head of the task force, quickly became the public face of the investigation. As Fahners team made calls, a DuPage County deputy coroner named Pete Siekmann sat in an office at the Illinois Department of Public Healths toxicology lab in Chicago and waited to see if the Tylenol capsules taken by Mary Lynn Reiner and Mary Sue McFarland were poisoned. Testing found cyanide in the Extra-Strength Tylenol capsule on the right. And when the sitting attorney general was indicted on tax fraud charges, Thompson appointed Fahner to fill the post. Every agency imaginable attended, many of them represented by their top leaders. Reporters from the Chicago Tribune tracked down Lewis last month as part of the investigative podcast "Unsealed: The Tylenol Murders" and asked him if he has any theories on who the Tylenol Killer might be. After a lengthy cat and mouse game, police and federal investigators determined that Lewis lived in New York and had no demonstrable links to the Chicago events. Arlington Heights police Chief Rodney Kath, second from left, works with other members of the Tylenol task force in an old state police bunker in Des Plaines. The latest Tribune poll showed he was down by about 20 points in the upcoming election. The coppers and the FBI guys that I knew all worked together. It would likely be someone with gray hair. On Friday afternoon, doctors removed Stanley Janus wife, Terri, from life support. The FBIs involvement puzzled some because, as far as anyone knew, the federal agency didnt have jurisdiction in the case. NBC News reached out to Lewis and did not receive a response. He said Marys mother, Jeanna, asked him if she should have noticed that someone had tampered with the bottle. But on this unseasonably warm October morning, during a separate meeting between the FBI and state police, Lane was one of several investigators who gathered to brainstorm possible motives behind the crime. After just one or two task force meetings, Ford and Gildea told their boss they werent going back. Three months earlier, 10 Chicago officers from the citys West Side were convicted of taking bribes to protect heroin rings. Her parents gave permission. Seven people died in 1982 after taking painkillers from bottle someone - police do not know who - had slipped cyanide pills into Ramon Antonio Vargas Sun 2 Oct 2022 02.00 EDT Forty years after the. What was my dads favorite color? And by days end, flight attendant Paula Princes body would be discovered and tests would show that a Tylenol bottle inside her home contained four cyanide-laced capsules. The attorney general had no authority to intervene, but Fahner had been an outstanding federal prosecutor, a well-liked director of the state police and an effective leader of major criminal investigations. Chicagos doing what they want, so lets just give them something minor to do.. What was he liked as a boss?, She added: Good and bad, I want to hear those stories, because its a reflection of who I am., Hurricane Ian: South Carolina and Florida comb wreckage to assess deadly toll, Original reporting and incisive analysis, direct from the Guardian every morning. IE 11 is not supported. That said, he was charged with extortion and sentenced to 20 years in prison. Nearly three weeks after the murders, for example, the FBI asked Chicago Tribune columnist Bob Greene to write a column about Mary Kellerman and include specific details such as the familys home address and the location of the little girls grave, with her parents permission. Im absolutely sure about that. The 50-count bottle, which the woman told police she purchased at Franks Finer Foods in Wheaton, contained seven capsules filled with potassium cyanide, records show. Bottles that werent tossed out were sent to J&J, the FDA and various government laboratories for testing. (Michael Budrys / Chicago Tribune). That same day, a 27-year-old postal worker named Adam Janus of Arlington Heights, Illinois, died of what was initially thought to be a massive heart attack but turned out to be cyanide poisoning as well. She told investigators that, in retrospect, she deserved her termination and swore she would do better at her next job. The profilers believed the killer was likely to visit one of those named places to see the heartbreak he had caused. Investigators assumed the culprit was a man, though records indicate they didnt automatically rule out anyone based on gender. And soon, many medications and foods sold over store counters began being sold in tamper-proof, sealed packaging. Other task force members, it should be noted, werent particularly fond of Chicagos efforts either. It didnt take long for Fellmann to recognize the pressures and expectations under which the newly formed task force would operate. He believed Thompson was behind the move, though Fahner denied it. The bottles traveled to various warehouses, including a final storage stop at a Jewel facility in suburban Franklin Park, before being delivered to different grocery stores on different days before the poisonings. (Phil Greer / Chicago Tribune). His boss assigned him to the Janus murders two days earlier because the departments more seasoned detectives were working the fatal beating of a homeless man in a local park. There was little evidence to go on, no inkling of a motive and five people dead. He investigated the Tylenol poisonings in the Janus family and later served as police chief in Island Lake. In the end, it was decided that the state police would take the lead among the agencies and that investigators would be divided into nearly four dozen teams. In theory, the plan would prevent anyone from griping about being kept out of the loop. Former Chicago police Detective Jimmy Gildea, shown at his Chicago home in July, investigated the death of Tylenol victim Paula Prince. A casket is carried out of St. Hyacinth Roman Catholic Church after the funeral Mass for three members of the Janus family in 1982. Tylenols parent company, Johnson & Johnson, also saw its stock price drop after the news about the tainted capsules broke. And everyone in the meeting is aware of one undeniable truth: There is no physical evidence linking a suspect to the poisonings. What are the Tylenol murders? They told stories of information hoarding, turf wars and glory seeking even when there was none to be had. Margolis, who later became director of the Illinois State Police, says multiagency efforts always endure allegations of infighting and spotlight stealing. Before that she reported for the Daily Herald, the Dayton Daily News and The Topeka Capital-Journal. There wasnt that much tension, Fahner said. Police departments were working the murders in relative isolation, and each county had its own states attorney to oversee the case. Several suspects did too. Eight of them would be three-member squads composed of a federal agent, a state investigator and a suburban detective from one of the towns where the victims lived or tainted bottles were discovered. I mean, theres 10,000 reasons why people compete with each other. Two main suspects in this unsolved case are James Lewis and Roger Arnold, who had both been linked to this occurrence in some way. Off the stage and i got up there named places to see the heartbreak he caused! 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