Idaho cold case linked to 1982 Tylenol murders, officials say
Detectives say a man whose body was found in an Idaho church in the 1980s may have been involved in the 1982 cyanide-tainted Tylenol killings in the Chicago area.
Detectives in Idaho have reopened a decades-old case after identifying Dr. Mathew Francis Betkouski, whose body was discovered in a Boise church in the 1980s. DNA testing and an engraved key found with the remains led investigators to confirm his identity and link him to a possible role in the 1982 cyanide-laced Tylenol poisonings that killed seven people in the Chicago area.
Tim Cooper, a detective with the Ada County Sheriff’s Office, said the investigation, which began in 2019, now suggests Betkouski may have been a suspect in the Chicago killings. Although Betkouski never lived in Illinois, photographs show he visited the region a year before the murders, and his former coworkers described him as volatile and fascinated by the idea of a “perfect crime.”
Authorities also found a homemade cyanide compound in Betkouski’s desk, which differs chemically from the toxin used in the 1982 deaths. Chicago police confirmed they are in contact with Idaho officials to assess whether the new findings affect the still-open Tylenol murder case.
The case had previously focused on James Lewis, who was arrested in 1982 and later died in prison after serving time for extorting Johnson & Johnson. Lewis denied involvement in the poisonings despite providing investigators with a detailed description of the alleged killer’s methods.