Madison and Rock County Poisoning Investigation

[Max Magee]

Helloa, all,

Since this concerns all of the above jurisdictions, I thought I'd share this with both the Tree Worshipers of Rock County and the Madison-based Notorious Canary-Trainers, in case people hadn't heard about this news story yet:

https://www.wmtv15news.com/2025/06/18/dane-co-prosecutors-allege-man-woman-plotted-cyanide-poisonings/

Dane Co. prosecutors allege man and woman plotted cyanide poisonings, leading to Madison hazmat investigations

Apparently, the accused poisoners (at least one of whom resided in Rock County) used a combination of thallium and cyanide. This was the first time I'd heard of thallium as a murder weapon, but apparently it's been a frequent tool in the poisoner's arsenal (being a principal component in some older rat poisons).

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thallium_poisoning

I read that Alexander Litvinenko was killed using the same poison, thallium, but for some reason, I thought that had been radioactive cesium.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2007/mar/07/russia.topstories3

I then thought I was perhaps thinking of Russian opposition leader, Alexei Navalny...
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/aug/27/history-killing-how-russia-has-silenced-putins-opponents

but no, he was poisoned with the nerve agent Novichok.

And then I realized, it was actually radioactive polonium, and that, indeed, was what killed Litvinenko.

We live in strange and dangerous times. It's not often that one finds poisoners in one's own backyard.

Can anyone recall the Sherlock Holmes story in which someone dies by cyanide poisoning? I can give a hint, if needed. I can't come up with any that feature thallium in any context. Perhaps that would be too elementary.

Max

Max "Magic Jezail Bullet" Magee

"I sat nursing my wounded leg. I had had a Jezail bullet through it some time before, and, though it did not prevent me from walking, it ached wearily at every change of the weather."

[joh...@comicsworthreading.com]

Thallium is (in)famous because of Agatha Christie’s The Pale Horse, and several instances of people recognizing thallium poisoning in real life because they’d read the book: 

Johanna Draper Carlson
joh...@comicsworthreading.com

<Jez_red_sm.png>

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