Overview

• On June 16, Paul Van Duyne, 43, and Andrea Whitaker, 41, were arrested in Madison after authorities accused them of plotting cyanide attacks on two of Van Duyne’s former girlfriends.
• Prosecutors allege Van Duyne broke into victims’ vehicles at a Costco parking lot and elsewhere to conceal cyanide in their water bottles and poisonous powder in air vents.
• Investigators point to Whitaker’s pharmacology background and her online searches for cyanide dosage and powder stability, leading prosecutors to label her the “brains of the operation.”
• Specialized hazmat teams from the Wisconsin National Guard, the FBI and the Department of Justice joined the probe after several agents were hospitalized due to cyanide exposure during evidence collection.
• Both suspects face multiple charges including attempted homicide and stalking, and they are held on bonds of $10 million for Van Duyne and $4 million for Whitaker, with separate hearings scheduled for August 4 and July 2.