Anti-freeze Fast Facts:– Engine coolant– Contains ethylene glycol– Sweet tasting– Causes inebriation– Dyed green to be able to detect it– One of the top homicidal poisons in USA The main ingredient in anti-freeze is ethylene glycol which is poisonous. It only takes a small amount of anti-freeze to poison a person. As your body absorbs…
Articles from April 2021
A to Z Challenge: Y (poisons & stories of their use)
Strychnine Fast Facts:– From the seeds of the Strychnos nux vomica (most common)– Native to India and SE Asia– A common pesticide– Used in heroin– Causes muscle spasms– Death is from exhaustion and asphyxia– No antidote– Used by serial killer Thomas Cream A naturally occurring poison, strychnine is obtained from seeds of the Dog Button…
A to Z Challenge: X (poisons & stories of their use)
Anthrax Fast Facts:– From a bacteria: Bacillus anthracis– Found naturally in the soil– Not contagious– Humans can contract it from infected animals– Can be vaccinated against it– About 2,000 cases a year– Fatality rates depend on method of contraction– Famous for the 2001 anthrax attacks in the USA Anthrax is an infection caused by a…
A to Z Challenge: W (poisons & stories of their use)
Wourali Fast Facts:– Commonly known as curare– Made from a mix of plants– Causes paralysis– Poison used on arrows in South America– Used in the Dr X killings Curare is not a specific poison, it is actually the common name given to a mixture of various plant extracts. It is made by boiling the bark…
A to Z Challenge: V (poisons & stories of their use)
VX Fast Facts:– Stands for “venemous agent X”– A synthetic compound developed in the UK– Tasteless and odourless nerve agent– 3 micrograms/kg will kill– Used to kill Kim Jong-nam As part of research into new insecticides in the early 1950s, scientists discovered a nerve agent they dubbed VX (for venemous agent X). VX interferes with…