The Chicago Tylenol Murders

In September and October 1982, seven people in the Chicago metropolitan area died after taking Tylenol capsules that had been laced with potassium cyanide. The murders prompted a nationwide panic, a massive recall of over 31 million bottles of Tylenol, and led directly to the introduction of tamper-resistant packaging in the pharmaceutical industry. Despite the investigation involving the FBI, FDA, and Chicago Police, no one has ever been charged with the murders. James Lewis, who sent an extortion letter to Johnson & Johnson, was convicted of extortion but never charged with the killings. The perpetrator remains unidentified.