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Background: The University of Wisconsin-Madison Influenza Research Institute in Madison, Wis. (Google Maps). Inset: Makoto Kuroda (Dane County Sheriff”s Office).
In a shocking turn of events, a man from Wisconsin has reportedly admitted to poisoning a colleague following the victim’s receipt of a coveted promotion, which the suspect had also been eyeing. The accused, Makoto Kuroda, aged 41, now faces charges of recklessly endangering safety after allegedly utilizing laboratory chemicals in his scheme.
The University of Wisconsin-Madison Police Department revealed in a press release that officers responded to an incident at the university’s Influenza Research Institute in Madison on April 7. This was prompted by reports of an “unknown odor” emanating from an office space. Subsequent tests of items from the office confirmed the presence of chemicals.
Just days after the initial complaint, Kuroda confessed to authorities about his attempt to poison a fellow employee. According to a criminal complaint sourced by local CBS affiliate WISC, Kuroda admitted to using chemicals from the institute’s lab, contaminating a water bottle and a pair of shoes belonging to a colleague with whom he had been working since 2017.
In a candid text message to another co-worker, Kuroda allegedly wrote, “I did it. I have also informed the person himself,” acknowledging his actions following the incident.
Kuroda reportedly texted a co-worker after the alleged incident, “I did it. I have also informed the person himself.”
Police say Kuroda readily confessed his involvement to police, who said the chemicals Kuroda used — paraformaldehyde and Trizol — were taken from his refrigerator at work. According to the complaint, Kuroda mixed the two chemicals together and put the mixture in each of his colleague’s shoes. He allegedly put 0.5 milliliters of paraformaldehyde in his colleague’s water bottle. Kuroda reportedly told police that 10 milliliters would be a lethal dose.
According to the complaint, Kuroda expressed several “pet peeves” with his colleague, namely how the colleague would not wear a lab coat or safety goggles. However, Kuroda reportedly told police that his primary motivation was his colleague’s second promotion to a position that Kuroda wanted for himself.
Kuroda was arrested on April 10 and charged with recklessly endangering safety and tampering with household products. He is being held at the Dane County Public Safety Building Jail on $5,000 cash bond. His next court appearance is scheduled for April 21.
Online court records show that Kuroda has been banned from the University of Wisconsin-Madison campus and its laboratories.