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TYMURS: The 1982 Tylenol Murders
Seven people died near Chicago after taking cyanide-laced Tylenol capsules on September 29, 1982. The Tylenol murders case - the most extensively covered news story since the assassination of John F. Kennedy - has perplexed federal, state, and local authorities for 30 years. Now, this riveting expose tells the story not reported in the news media of an inquiry led astray from the start and marred by the mishandling and destruction of evidence. Drawing on thousands of archived news articles, police reports, court documents, interviews with the prime suspects, and interviews with authorities who were involved in the investigation, this compelling narrative provides a revelatory account of the investigation into the murders that terrorized a nation.
241 pages, ebook
First published September 1, 2012
31 people are currently reading
204 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews
December 21, 2012
I remember this event and I appreciated reading this book. What is so maddening is that this type of bungling investigations is still prevalent in society today. Allowing the company involved to do their own investigation and then destroy evidence is criminal!
Ultimately it is we, the consumers, that end up paying the price.
Ultimately it is we, the consumers, that end up paying the price.
July 11, 2025
This book contains:
* A myriad of random facts
* A plethora of suppositions
* A dearth of conclusions
If you want to know the who, what, and why of the 1982 Tylenol murders, you will be dissatisfied with this account.
* A myriad of random facts
* A plethora of suppositions
* A dearth of conclusions
If you want to know the who, what, and why of the 1982 Tylenol murders, you will be dissatisfied with this account.
November 15, 2012
While certainly interesting, Tymurs could have been so much more. A little too generic in its writing, this book is still worth reading, but it's not the riveting read I thought it would be.
November 21, 2012
I remember being a teen when this happened and the terror but not comprehending or understanding any of it. This book explains and clarifies a lot even though there still aren't clear answers it helped me see the big picture a lot better! I'm glad I took the time to read it.
April 27, 2018
Read for 2018 PopSugar challenge: True Crime
I imagine that this story could have been written in such a way that it was an intense, page-turning thriller. Bartz did not do this. Book was well-researched, but not well written or organized. A lot of repetition of stuff and a lot of jumping back and forth. Oh, and if you want to find out about the main suspect, you have to buy his next book.
I imagine that this story could have been written in such a way that it was an intense, page-turning thriller. Bartz did not do this. Book was well-researched, but not well written or organized. A lot of repetition of stuff and a lot of jumping back and forth. Oh, and if you want to find out about the main suspect, you have to buy his next book.
January 6, 2019
I new nothing about this, as it occurred in the USA was was poorly reported here in the UK. It was fascinating to realise how easily the rumours of poisoned pharmaceuticals can travel and its effects.
November 19, 2012
TYMURS: The 1982 Tylenol Murders by Scot Bartz is an extensive investigation into the 1982 Tylenol Murders. In 1982 people were dying after taking Extra Strength Tylenol Capsules. Naturally the product was recalled but it was too late for some. The stories spread by the media were everything from a madman was running around poisoning random bottles on store shelves possibly to blackmail the company Johnson & Johnson to one of the victims family member did it and poisoned others so it looked like she was a random victim of some nut who gets his kicks out of killing people. It was only by chance that a doctor in the emergency room put two and two together when he treated a 'victim' who died although he didn't know what was wrong with him at the time.Then he learned that two family members of this victim were on their way in with similar symptoms. The doctor made a phone call to the Poison Center and learned the symptoms he explained seemed to fit cyanide poisoning which later blood tests confirmed.
The author brings to light how the situation was mishandled starting with when the Tylenol boxes that were found opened up with capsules taken apart and a 'white powder' found on the floor through how the investigation was handled. Johnson & Johnson was highly praised for their handling of the situation and a relationship developed between them and the agencies who were involved in the investigation of the incident. So in other words, Johnson & Johnson takes over heading the investigation and therefore able to release to the media what information it saw fit.
The author revealed a lot of information I never heard before and the amount of research done before writing this book is staggering. His research went from news reports to court documents and even talking to the people involved. Keep in mind though that is just what this book is, a research and report of the findings. If you are looking for a story where you get close to the main characters and have an adventure, this is not the book for you. There is no bonding with anyone in this book, the main character is a pill called Extra Strength Tylenol, and the plot or purpose is where and who done it. The author seems to slant toward some conclusions with the documentation of why he comes to this conclusion.
I recommend this book to everyone who interested in the Tylenol Murders.
The author brings to light how the situation was mishandled starting with when the Tylenol boxes that were found opened up with capsules taken apart and a 'white powder' found on the floor through how the investigation was handled. Johnson & Johnson was highly praised for their handling of the situation and a relationship developed between them and the agencies who were involved in the investigation of the incident. So in other words, Johnson & Johnson takes over heading the investigation and therefore able to release to the media what information it saw fit.
The author revealed a lot of information I never heard before and the amount of research done before writing this book is staggering. His research went from news reports to court documents and even talking to the people involved. Keep in mind though that is just what this book is, a research and report of the findings. If you are looking for a story where you get close to the main characters and have an adventure, this is not the book for you. There is no bonding with anyone in this book, the main character is a pill called Extra Strength Tylenol, and the plot or purpose is where and who done it. The author seems to slant toward some conclusions with the documentation of why he comes to this conclusion.
I recommend this book to everyone who interested in the Tylenol Murders.
August 30, 2013
I enjoyed this book although I did get a little bogged down and confused with it around a third of the way in. Living in the UK I hadn't heard of this case but I have all 3 books in the series downloaded. It was fascinating to learn of all the internal machinations with Johnson & Johnson and the way police services appeared to let THEM handle all the investigative work regarding the tampered bottles of the product. I didn't really understand why that happened. You'd expect the police to utilise their own labs. Although there were no more deaths after they started investigating and told the public to return any of the drug to them for in return for a voucher.
It appeared a ridiculous thought that the bottles were tampered with on stores' shelves and nobody ever noticed !! To my way of reading it had to have been a distribution plant employee or someone down the line of handlers before it hit shelves !
I was staggered by the original 2 deputies discovering the box full of tampered-with Tylenol dumped in the street yet did nothing about it. Got their breakfasts and buggered off !!
It was sad how little the surviving spouses or family members were awarded in compensation,too. That had to be tricky for Johnson & Johnson to cough up as they hadn't poisoned the drugs as a company manufacturing it but clearly an employee someplace down the line had to be involved.
I spotted a few apostrophe errors and at one point the word investigatos was used which was careless. There were the odd missing words in sentences too like what. The book ended at 68% and the remainder was source notes, etc.
I'll be interested to read the follow-up books by the author, though.
It appeared a ridiculous thought that the bottles were tampered with on stores' shelves and nobody ever noticed !! To my way of reading it had to have been a distribution plant employee or someone down the line of handlers before it hit shelves !
I was staggered by the original 2 deputies discovering the box full of tampered-with Tylenol dumped in the street yet did nothing about it. Got their breakfasts and buggered off !!
It was sad how little the surviving spouses or family members were awarded in compensation,too. That had to be tricky for Johnson & Johnson to cough up as they hadn't poisoned the drugs as a company manufacturing it but clearly an employee someplace down the line had to be involved.
I spotted a few apostrophe errors and at one point the word investigatos was used which was careless. There were the odd missing words in sentences too like what. The book ended at 68% and the remainder was source notes, etc.
I'll be interested to read the follow-up books by the author, though.
December 1, 2012
Tymurs is not your typical book with a cast of characters and a plot. Yes, it does have a plot - the death of innocent people from taking a simple medication.
This is a story about the Tylenol murders back in 1982. The FBI gave this case the code name “Tymurs”.
Had it not been that more than one person died from the same location, and the cause found to be the Tylenol capsules, we might never have known to research this farther. Yes, they were all from the greater Chicago area, but it seemed by pure luck the cause of their deaths was found.
Yes, there are a cast of characters, including the 7 people who died because of the poisoning on Tylenol capsules. There are people from Johnson & Johnson, the processing facility, the warehouse and shipping facility, the local police and the FBI. Then add in all the media.There are so many people involved it is hard to keep track, but rather easier to read with where they are from, not who they are.
I would also suggest reading with two bookmarks, as at the end of each chapter, there are pages of notes with sources and further reference.
Definitely a very interesting read and I would recommend it to everyone.
This is a story about the Tylenol murders back in 1982. The FBI gave this case the code name “Tymurs”.
Had it not been that more than one person died from the same location, and the cause found to be the Tylenol capsules, we might never have known to research this farther. Yes, they were all from the greater Chicago area, but it seemed by pure luck the cause of their deaths was found.
Yes, there are a cast of characters, including the 7 people who died because of the poisoning on Tylenol capsules. There are people from Johnson & Johnson, the processing facility, the warehouse and shipping facility, the local police and the FBI. Then add in all the media.There are so many people involved it is hard to keep track, but rather easier to read with where they are from, not who they are.
I would also suggest reading with two bookmarks, as at the end of each chapter, there are pages of notes with sources and further reference.
Definitely a very interesting read and I would recommend it to everyone.
February 19, 2013
Like most people, I always believed that J&J wrote the book on corporate responsibility. I found it so odd that a company that handled the Tylenol poisonings so beautifully could have so badly botched the multiple rounds of recalls of Tylenol, Sudafed, Motrin, and medical devices. This book has convinced me that they aren't behaving strangely. They are doing the same thing they did back then. The book has an amazing detailed timeline of exactly what J&J did, and didn't do, and when. Between CPD, the FBI and J&J"s collective bumbling and obstructing, someone got away with murdering 7 people.
November 21, 2012
At times the writing got in the way of the content but overall worth reading. I had no idea this took place, I think the book makes it clear why even the appearance of impropriety should be avoided at all costs -- letting J&J handle lab tests and recalled product? It also seems the FDA was completely ineffectual. When we most needed government investigation and protection!
February 4, 2014
According to my Kindle, I made it around 40% of the way through this book. I found it a bit confusing and I didn't have enough interest to continue further. I was pretty disgusted with Johnson and Johnson, though.
March 20, 2013
I thought it was very slow.
February 12, 2015
I remember when this happened and I was eager to read about it. Disappointing read. It seemed poorly organized and repetitive.
March 6, 2013
Disappointing. Delivery was not clear and concise enough to hold my attention. I noticed there is a second book to discuss outcomes. Why? One is enough. I was left hanging.
January 5, 2013
Probably the most boring true crime book I've ever read. Unless you are researching the Tylenol Murders of 1982, don't bother.
February 10, 2013
TYMURS told the story of the Tylenol murders. It was somewhat disappointing that the police/FBI investigation was so sloppy. The murderer was never caught.
February 24, 2013
I was in Jr High while this was happening and remember soem of it from the news. Nice perspective and additional information about what was going on at the time.
June 14, 2013
Was going to get 3 stars, but the book ended with **spoiler** to find out what happened next, read my next book. Womp.
Very thorough and seemingly complete, but quite dry.
Very thorough and seemingly complete, but quite dry.
Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews