Chicago Tylenol poisonings — the full case file

No one has ever been charged in the Chicago Tylenol poisonings case. In September 1982, seven people in the Chicago area died after taking Extra-Strength Tylenol capsules that had been laced with potassium cyanide after leaving the factory. The case remains unsolved as of 2026, though it led to nationwide tamper-resistant packaging reforms and federal anti-tampering laws. On September 28, 1982, Mary Kellerman, 12, is hospitalized after taking a contaminated Extra-Strength Tylenol capsule; she dies the next day. On September 29, 1982, six more people—Adam, Stanley, and Theresa Janus, Mary McFarland, Paula Prince, and Mary Reiner—die after consuming cyanide-laced Tylenol capsules. On October 5, 1982, Johnson & Johnson issues a nationwide recall of Tylenol capsules, covering an estimated 31 million bottles. In 1983, Chicago Tribune, at the FBI's request, publishes the address and grave location of Mary Kellerman as part of a surveillance effort targeting the perpetrator. In January 1984, Roger Arnold, previously investigated in the Tylenol case, is convicted of an unrelated murder. In 1986, three more deaths occur in separate cyanide-tampering incidents involving gelatin capsules, including Diane Elsroth in Yonkers, New York, and Susan Snow and Bruce Nickell in Washington state (Excedrin tampering). In 2009, Illinois authorities and federal agents renew the investigation; Lewis's Massachusetts home is searched. Court documents released this year show DOJ investigators concluded Lewis was responsible but lacked sufficient evidence to charge him. In January 2010, James W. Lewis and his wife submit DNA samples and fingerprints; Roger Arnold's body is exhumed for DNA testing. Neither DNA sample matches evidence on the tainted bottles. On May 19, 2011, FBI requests a DNA sample from Ted Kaczynski in connection with the case; he denies ever possessing potassium cyanide. On July 9, 2023, James W. Lewis dies at age 76. The case remains unsolved. This case file is kept in memory of its seven victims and the people they loved. The full sourced case file, with every fact cited, is at casepin dot org.

Transcript from the video’s narration track. For every source, open the case file.