What happened to The Tylenol Murders’ prime suspect James Lewis?

Netflix’s latest true-crime series The Tylenol Murders is currently trending on the streaming platform, with viewers expressing their shock as the show follows the terrifying crimes that took place in 1982, where seven people were killed after using cyanide-laced Tylenol.

The case sparked nationwide panic and led to a huge criminal investigation to discover the culprit behind the mindless crime.

You may also likeWhile no suspect was ever charged in the poisoning, a man named James Lewis was charged with extortion after claiming responsibility for poisoning the Tylenol and demanding $1 million. But did he actually poison the medication, and where is he now?

Who died in the poisonings?Seven individuals were tragically killed by ingesting Tylenol during this time, including Mary Kellerman, 12; Adam Janus, 27; Stanley Janus, 25; Theresa Janus, 20; Mary McFarland, 31; and Paula Prince, 35.

Adam, Stanley and Theresa Janus were all killedThe production was quickly shut down and bottles taken off the shelves, with Former First Assistant Cook County State’s Attorney Bob Milan claiming that dozens of people would have died if they had not. He said: “Had Johnson & Johnson not shut down the manufacture of Tylenol and taken all these bottles off the shelf immediately, we would’ve had dozens and dozens. This ranks among the scariest and the worst I’ve ever seen. Totally innocent victims.”

Who was James Lewis?James was the police’s prime suspect in the case, as he sent a letter to Johnson & Johnson, the company that produced Tylenol, demanding money to stop the killings.

While there was some evidence that James was behind the murders, including that he had previously owned a poisoning book where his fingerprints were on pages linked to cyanide, and that by his own claims, he would have written the extortion letter to Johnson & Johnson before the news was reported in the media. He spent 12 years in prison for extortion.

Tylenol was poisoned in 1982 Speaking about the accusations, his lawyer Mike Monico told Boston News: “They never gave us any evidence showing his link to the murders — just the opposite. From the evidence, it seemed like it was difficult for one person to have done this.”

In 2009, court documents revealed that investigators claimed that James was responsible for the poisonings, but there was too little evidence to charge him. In 2010, he submitted to DNA samples and fingerprints, which did not match any DNA discovered on the bottles.

FBI agents, with television photographers waiting for them, walk out of an apartment building at 170 Gore Street in Cambridge carrying evidence they collected from the apartment of James LewisHe died in 2023, aged 76. He was found in his Massachusetts home. Following his death, former Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeremy Margolis said: “I was saddened to learn of James Lewis’ death. Not because he’s dead, but because he didn’t die in prison.”