Home / Crime and Justice / Colleague's Hidden Camera Exposes Poison Plot
Colleague's Hidden Camera Exposes Poison Plot
13 Oct
Summary
- Hidden camera video shows coworker pouring substance into water bottle.
- Coworker convicted of poisoning colleague with cadmium for over a year.
- Victim releases video as coworker seeks dismissal of felony conviction.
Rong Yuan, a former employee at Berkeley Engineering and Research, has released hidden camera video that she states shows her colleague, David Xu, pouring a substance into her water bottle. This release coincides with Xu's attempt to have his felony conviction dismissed. Prosecutors alleged that Xu poisoned Yuan with cadmium, a toxic heavy metal, over a span of more than a year, from 2017 to 2019.
While Xu faced charges including attempted murder, he accepted a plea deal for one count of poisoning, resulting in a sentence of two years of probation. Yuan described feeling symptoms such as hair loss and dry heaving during the period of the poisoning. She installed a hidden camera on her desk in February 2019, which captured footage of Xu tampering with her water bottle.
Xu completed his probation in March. Despite his request to have the conviction expunged, it will reportedly remain on his record. Yuan stated that releasing the video was a last resort due to her belief that the legal system had failed her.
