Man, girlfriend planned elaborate scheme to poison his exes with cyanide, prosecutors say

MADISON, Wis. (WMTV/Gray News) – A man and woman in Wisconsin are accused of plotting to kill several of the man’s ex-girlfriends by poisoning them with cyanide.

According to Dane County Deputy District Attorney William Brown, the investigation began over a month ago.

Officials said a woman left a Costco store in Middleton and realized someone had broken into her vehicle. The woman took a sip of a water bottle she had in her car and immediately spat it out after she thought it tasted weird, Brown said.

A few weeks later, the exact same situation happened. The woman once again realized someone broke into her vehicle at Costco, and she called 911 after smelling her water bottle and thinking it was “off.”

Officials said after the water bottle was submitted to the state crime lab, police tied Paul Van Duyne to the crime.

“Ultimately, that water bottle was taken to the crime lab and it was learned that there was cyanide placed in that water bottle,” Brown said.

Brown said that a similar situation occurred in Rock County, resulting in the hospitalization of a different woman who saw a powdery substance in her car and drank from a water bottle.

Both victims had previously gone on dates with Van Duyne, according to Brown.

Van Duyne is facing charges of stalking and attempted homicide.

Officials say that Van Duyne’s current girlfriend, Andrea Whitaker, was an accomplice. She faces a charge of harboring or aiding a felon.

Brown said that after Van Duyne and Whitaker started dating, they planned to kill women he had previously dated by poisoning them.

“It does appear that this defendant and Mr. Van Duyne have started dating and apparently created this plot to kill his ex-girlfriends by poisoning them with cyanide valium poisons,” Brown said.

Brown alleges that Whitaker did research related to cyanide and was communicating with Van Duyne about the poisonings.

Officials said that Whitaker has an academic background in pharmacology and allegedly has knowledge of how to make different poisons.

“So while it does appear that Mr. Van Duyne was perhaps the actual person that was entering both victims vehicles and putting the cyanide in the water bottles, and in at least Rock County putting cyanide powder in the air vents, I think this defendant’s involvement is absolutely clear in that she is likely the brains of the operation in figuring out how to do this,” Brown said.

The arrests and alleged poisonings prompted several hazmat investigations in Madison this week, involving the FBI and the Wisconsin National Guard.

Brown noted that seven Wisconsin Department of Justice DCI agents have been hospitalized because of exposure to the substance.

Authorities arrested Van Duyne in Rock County.

A probable cause statement alleges that Van Duyne called Whitaker from jail after he was arrested on a potential stalking charge on Monday and asked her to remove evidence from his home. Brown alleged the items Whitaker removed from the home were very likely poisons. She also took a laptop, Brown said.

Whitaker was also arrested and placed on a $750,000 bond Wednesday.

Both Whitaker and Van Duyne are expected to appear in court Friday.