The Chicago Tylenol Murders
The story of the 1982 cyanide poisonings that killed seven people — and were never solved.
September 29 – October 1, 1982
On the morning of September 29, 1982, twelve-year-old Mary Kellerman of Elk Grove Village, Illinois took an Extra-Strength Tylenol capsule for a cold — and died. That evening, 27-year-old Adam Janus of Arlington Heights took two capsules for chest pain — and died. As his family gathered to grieve, his brother Stanley and sister-in-law Theresa took capsules from the same bottle — and both collapsed. Stanley died that night; Theresa lingered on life support until October 1.
The connection was made by Helen Jensen, Arlington Heights' public health official, who visited the Janus home and realized all three had taken Tylenol. Cook County investigator Nick Pishos compared the Janus bottle with Mary Kellerman's — both carried the same control number, MC2880, and both smelled of bitter almonds: the telltale scent of cyanide. Testing confirmed the capsules had been packed with potassium cyanide at 100 to 1,000 times the lethal dose.
By October 1 the scope was clear. The killer — or killers — had bought Tylenol bottles from stores across the Chicago area, opened the two-piece capsules, filled them with cyanide, and put the bottles back on the shelves. The tainted bottles came from different manufacturing plants, proving the tampering happened after the product left the factory.
The Aftermath
Johnson & Johnson, Tylenol's maker, halted all production and advertising and issued a nationwide recall of 31 million bottles — over $100 million in product, one of the largest recalls in history at the time. Police drove through Chicago with loudspeakers warning residents not to take Tylenol. Copycat tamperings spiked, with more than 270 incidents reported in the following month.
James Lewis, a New York man, sent an extortion letter to Johnson & Johnson demanding $1 million to “stop the killing.” He was convicted of extortion in 1983 and served 13 years — but was never charged with the murders themselves. He died in 2023, and the case remains officially unsolved.
The murders changed American life. Within weeks, Johnson & Johnson introduced triple-sealed, tamper-resistant packaging — glued box flaps, a plastic neck seal, and a foil inner seal. In 1983, Congress passed the federal anti-tampering law known as the “Tylenol bill,” and in 1989 the FDA established tamper-evident packaging guidelines for all consumer products. Every safety seal you break today exists because of these seven deaths.
In 2007 the FBI established a task force with Illinois State Police and local departments to re-examine the evidence with modern forensics; investigators searched James Lewis's home in 2011. No charges have ever been filed. On October 9, 2026, Unsolved Mysteries premiered its first feature documentary, Unmasking the Tylenol Killer, on the Roku Channel — more than 44 years later, the killer has still never been caught.
The Victims
- Kellerman, Mary (Age 12 – September 29, 1982) The first victim. Twelve-year-old Mary Kellerman of Elk Grove Village took an Extra-Strength Tylenol capsule for a cold on the morning of September 29, 1982. She collapsed shortly afterward and died at home. Her death was initially thought to be a stroke or a reaction to her illness — until the pattern emerged.
- Janus, Adam (Age 27 – September 29, 1982) A postal worker from Arlington Heights, Adam Janus took two Tylenol capsules for chest pain that evening. He collapsed and was rushed to the hospital, where he died. As his family gathered at his home to grieve, his brother and sister-in-law reached for the same bottle — with devastating consequences.
- Janus, Stanley (Age 25 – September 29, 1982) Adam's younger brother. While mourning at Adam's house, Stanley took capsules from the same Tylenol bottle. He collapsed and died en route to the hospital — the third death in one family in a single day.
- Janus, Theresa (Age 19 – October 1, 1982) Stanley's wife. She also took capsules from the same bottle while grieving with the family. She collapsed, was placed on life support, and was declared brain dead — dying on October 1. Three members of one family, wiped out by the same bottle.
- McFarland, Mary (Age 31 – September 30, 1982) A single mother from Elmhurst, Mary McFarland took Tylenol at work and collapsed. Her death was at first attributed to a seizure or natural causes, before investigators connected it to the poisonings.
- Reiner, Mary (Age 27 – September 30, 1982) From Winfield, Mary Reiner had recently given birth and took Tylenol for post-labor pain. She collapsed and died; her autopsy confirmed cyanide poisoning.
- Prince, Paula (Age 35 – October 1, 1982) A flight attendant from Chicago and the final victim. Paula Prince bought a bottle of Extra-Strength Tylenol at a Walgreens on her way home from work on October 1 — surveillance footage captured the fateful purchase. She died that evening, after the pattern had already emerged but before the public warnings reached everyone.