Cambridge Man Suspected In 1982 Chicago Tylenol Murders Has Died

CAMBRIDGE, MA — A 76-year-old Cambridge man is dead nearly a year after Chicago authorities began again questioning him about his possible involvement in the 1982 Chicago Tylenol murders, several outlets including the Chicago Tribune reported.

James W. Lewis—the lone suspect in the murders, which garnered national attention and changed the way medication is packaged—was found dead at his home in suburban Boston, according to the Tribune.

Lewis was convicted in 1983 of attempting to extort $1 million from Johnson & Johnson. He stated in a letter he would stop the killings in exchange for the money. Lewis served a 12-year prison sentence for the crime.

During a three-day span from Sept. 29 through Oct. 1, 1982, what would become known as the Chicago Tylenol murders played out across the suburbs of Chicago. In the end, seven people died after an over-the-counter pain reliever was laced with cyanide in a case that remains unsolved to this day.

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According to police, the person or people responsible for the deaths of local residents removed bottles of Tylenol capsules from the shelves of several grocery and drugs stores in the Chicago area, including stores in Arlington Heights, Elk Grove Village, Schaumburg, Chicago and Winfield.

According to ABC7, Lewis once explained in a jail interview how the killer would have used a drilled pegboard to fill Tylenol capsules with cyanide, though he has always insisted he was not the one to do it and has never been charged with the killings.

On Sept. 29, 1982, Mary Kellerman, 12, of Elk Grove Village, became the first victim after taking a capsule of Extra-Strength Tylenol. The Washington Post reported at the time that she had stayed home from school that day due to a cold and was given the capsule by her father. Soon thereafter, she became ill and fell into a coma, dying before paramedics arrived at the Kellerman home.

Hours later, three members of the same family — Adam Janus, 27, of Arlington Heights, his brother, Stanley Janus, 25, and Stanley's wife, Theresa Janus, 19, of Lisle — all died after taking Tylenol from the same bottle. The Washington Post reported that Adam Janus had taken the medicine at his home for muscle aches. He collapsed and was taken to Northwest Memorial Hospital, where he died.

According to 1985 Appellate Court of Illinois documents, Stanley and Theresa Janus were at the hospital with Adam Janus when he died. After his death, they went to his home, grief-stricken over their loss. They then took Tylenol capsules from the same bottle as Adam Janus had. Both collapsed and were taken back to NMH, where they died.

In the days that followed, Mary McFarland, 31, of Elmhurst, Paula Prince, 35, of Chicago, and Mary Reiner, 27, of Winfield, also died under similar circumstances.

While police investigated numerous leads over the years, Lewis had been the sole suspect who continued to be questioned. Last September, the Chicago Tribune reported that investigators had renewed efforts to pin the Tylenol murders on Lewis. Sources told the Tribune that investigators traveled to the Boston area to interview Lewis, who maintained his innocence despite the extortion conviction.

Eric DeGrechie contributed reporting.