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CHICAGO (CBS) — Major developments emerged Thursday in the 40-year investigation into the Tylenol killings in the greater Chicago area.
We learned Thursday that investigators went to Boston this week to re-interview the man considered a suspect in the seven deaths.
James Lewis was never charged with the murders, but was convicted of trying to extort $1 million from Johnson & Johnson in the days after the cyanide pills hit store shelves.
CBS 2 Investigators began re-examining the case in April. As CBS 2 Investigator Brad Edwards reported, we also went to Boston last month to try to track Lewis down.
Indeed, we tracked down Lewis to the same apartment in Cambridge, Massachusetts that he moved into after he was released from prison.
In 1982, seven people in Chicago died after taking Tylenol laced with cyanide. Next week marks the 40th anniversary of the event that horrified the city and the country.
Soon after, a man wrote an extortion letter to Johnson & Johnson and its subsidiary, the maker of Tylenol—demanding $1 million to stop the killings.
The man who wrote this letter was James Lewis. He would later spend a dozen years in prison for the extortion attempt.
Forty years later, Lewis remains a man of interest in the actual murders. He is really the only living famous person of interest.
When we went looking for him last month, he hadn’t been seen or heard from in over a decade.
We went to Louis’ apartment outside of Boston. We knew it was him – and he is a man with a long history of dishonesty.
Over two weeks ago, we showed our entire conversation with Louis to Arlington Heights Police Sgt. Joe Murphy. Finally, Arlington Heights police requested a copy of it.
Sergeant Murphy is the de facto head of a multi-agency homicide task force, the Illinois State Police and the FBI. He was unable to comment Thursday, citing the ongoing nature of the investigation.
However, CBS 2 was able to confirm that individuals investigating the Tylenol murders have been in Boston in recent days — continuing investigative efforts that include interviewing Lewis.
FBI sources released this statement:
“No interviews on the subject of the 1982 Tylenol murders have been authorized recently. Any opinions expressed by former employees are their own and do not constitute official statements attributable to the FBI. The presumption of innocence is a cornerstone of the American legal system, and standard Justice Department policy prevents the FBI and its officials from expressing opinions about the guilt of a private citizen except when appropriate based on legal proceedings. Justice Department policy also prevents the FBI from commenting on the nature of ongoing investigations. For further comment, we will have to refer you to the Arlington Heights Police Department as the lead investigating agency.”
Over the past six months, we’ve interviewed dozens of people connected to the case, from former police officers to emergency workers and relatives of some of the victims.
Later this fall, we will share their stories in a multi-part documentary series.
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