DHS warns of increasing trend in domestic partner poisonings
The Department of Homeland Security seal (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
(NEW YORK) — Domestic partners are “increasingly likely” to use chemical and biological toxins to kill or harm their partners, a trend so alarming that the Department of Homeland Security issued a warning to law enforcement.
The warning came in a January intelligence note, obtained by ABC News, that said people intent on harming or killing their domestic partners are turning to poisons like cyanide or ricin to do it, which are “often sourced from online black markets or made at home.”
“The use of chemical and biological toxins in domestic violence cases poses a significant challenge for detection and prosecution due to the often subtle and delayed onset of symptoms,” the intelligence note said.
The document highlighted as an example the case of a Colorado dentist convicted of first-degree murder last year after gradually poisoning his wife with a mix of arsenic, cyanide and tetrahydrozoline, the latter a medication commonly found in over-the-counter eye drops. The dentist secretly dosed his wife by adding the poisons to her protein shakes, according to prosecutors, resulting in her being hospitalized three times in a 10-day span, and then gave her a fatal dose of cyanide while she was ill in the hospital.
“Incidents using chemical or biological toxins to harm or kill are driven by several factors including accessibility of online information, ease of obtaining certain chemicals, and perceived difficulty in detection,” the DHS note said. It also listed an additional 16 cases in the U.S. since 2019 in which individuals were accused or convicted of poisoning current or former spouses, domestic or romantic partners, or family members, 10 of which resulted in the victim’s death.
Substances most often used in domestic poisoning incidents are antifreeze, eye drops, the synthetic opioid fentanyl and the prescription medication colchicine, as well as cyanide and the chemical element thallium, according to the note.
“These substances are often chosen for their ability to mimic natural illnesses, complicating detection and investigation,” the note said.
“If the trend of using chemical or biological toxins to kill or harm continues, we may see an increase in fatalities and long-term health consequences among survivors,” as well as an increase in the “need for specialized training and equipment for first responders,” according to the DHS note.
“The recurring use of these toxins by domestic partners highlights the need for more awareness, regulation, and forensic expertise to address this trend in domestic partner violence,” the note further said.
Luigi Mangione (R) appears for a suppression of evidence hearing in the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in Manhattan Criminal Court on December 01, 2025 in New York City. (Steven Hirsch-Pool/Getty Images)
(NEW YORK) — A year to the day after Luigi Mangione allegedly stalked and gunned down United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson on a Manhattan sidewalk, the 27-year-old alleged killer was identified in court by one of the police officers who first encountered him in Altoona, Pennsylvania, following the shooting.
“He’s the gentleman right there sitting between the female and the male. Looks like he’s wearing a suit,” patrolman Tyler Frye said, pointing with his left hand.
Mangione’s lawyers are attempting to convince the judge overseeing his case to prohibit prosecutors from using critical evidence, including the alleged murder weapon and Mangione’s journal. They argue the evidence was unlawfully seized from his backpack without a warrant during his arrest.
Mangione — in court for the third day of a pretrial hearing in his state murder case — flipped a pen in his right hand and then began writing on a white lined legal pad, largely ignoring body camera footage of his arrest that played on screens around the courtroom.
Frye, 26, was still a probationary officer, on the job less than a year, when he responded to a McDonalds on E. Plank Road after the dispatcher told them a manager had called 911 to report someone who looked like the person wanted in the shooting.
On the body camera footage played in court, someone is heard directing the officers, “He’s back there.”
Frye is seen in the footage standing a few feet from Mangione while Mangione nibbled a hash brown as the officers stalled for time by engaging in small talk about the Steak McMuffin.
Another officer is heard asking Mangione, “Do you know what all this nonsense is about?” Mangione is heard replying, “We’re going to find out I guess.”
Officers subsequently informed Mangione he was under “official police investigation” and asked him his real name. Frye, on the video, is seen writing the name “Luigi Mangione” in a small notebook and providing his date of birth. At that point, Mangione is read is Miranda rights.
Defense attorneys are trying to exclude statements Mangione made and the contents of his backpack, including a 3D-printed gun and a red notebook.
“Where were you standing in relation to the backpack?” prosecutor Joel Seidemann asked. “Right near it,” Frye replied.
“Were you aware of that backpack?” Seidemann asked. “I was,” Frye said.
“When did you become aware of it?” asked Seidemann.
“About the time I walked in,” Frye replied.
The hearing has the potential to sideline what prosecutors say is some of the strongest evidence of Mangione’s guilt, and has provided the most detailed preview to date of their case against the alleged killer.
Actor Matthew Perry of the television show ‘The Kennedys – After Camelot’ speaks onstage during the REELZChannel portion of the 2017 Winter Television Critics Association Press Tour at the Langham Hotel on January 13, 2017 in Pasadena, California. (Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images)
(LOS ANGELES) — The second of two doctors who were convicted in connection with Matthew Perry’s ketamine death was sentenced on Tuesday to eight months of home supervision for his role in a conspiracy to illegally distribute ketamine to the “Friends” actor.
Mark Chavez is one of five people charged and convicted in connection with Perry’s 2023 overdose death. He pleaded guilty last year to one count of conspiracy to distribute ketamine, admitting to selling fraudulently obtained ketamine to another doctor, Salvador Plasencia, that was then sold to Perry in the weeks before the actor died from an overdose.
The two doctors did not provide the ketamine that ultimately killed Perry, who was discovered unresponsive in a jacuzzi at his Los Angeles home in October 2023 at the age of 54. Though federal prosecutors said they knew that the actor had a history of substance abuse and that the drug would be administered without medical supervision.
Chavez’s sentence also includes a supervised release term of three years and 300 hours of community service.
He faced up to 10 years in prison, prosecutors said.
The government asked for a sentence of six months home confinement that included a two-year term of supervised release as well as at least 300 hours of community service. Prosecutors said Chavez, a former operator of a ketamine clinic, provided Plasencia with vials of liquid ketamine and ketamine lozenges that had been obtained by submitting a fraudulent prescription in the name of a patient without that patient’s knowledge or consent.
“As the Drug Enforcement Administration and Medical Board investigators closed in on defendant’s illegal ketamine sales, defendant initially lied and tried to evade responsibility,” the government said in a filing ahead of sentencing. “To defendant’s credit, however, his story continued, and became one of accountability.”
The government said that once confronted with his criminal acts, Chavez “expediently accepted responsibility and agreed to cooperate with the government’s investigation.”
Chavez’s defense attorneys asked for three years of supervised release, arguing in a filing ahead of sentencing that his conduct was “limited and peripheral” and “far removed from the tragic events of October 28, 2023.”
They noted that Chavez had never met Perry, entered his home or administered medication to him, and that he did not supply the ketamine that caused his death. They also said he “accepted responsibility early in this case and signed a plea agreement prior to any indictment, agreed to cooperate, and voluntarily surrendered his medical license even before his detention hearing.”
“The consequences Mr. Chavez has already faced are significant,” his attorneys, Matthew Binninger and Zach Brooks, wrote. “Once a practicing emergency room physician, he lost his profession, suffered public disgrace, and now earns a living as an Uber driver. He has remained compliant with all terms of pretrial supervision and continues to demonstrate sincere regret for his actions.”
Both Chavez and Plasencia gave up their medical licenses after pleading guilty.
According to Plasencia’s plea agreement, one of his patients introduced him to Perry on Sept. 30, 2023, with the unidentified patient referring to the actor as a “‘high profile person’ who was seeking ketamine and was willing to pay ‘cash and lots of thousands’ for ketamine treatment,'” according to Plasencia’s plea agreement.
Plasencia contacted his mentor, Chavez, to discuss Perry’s request for ketamine and purchased vials of liquid ketamine and ketamine lozenges from him, according to the agreement.
In discussing how much to charge Perry, Plasencia said in text messages to Chavez, “I wonder how much this moron will pay” and “Lets [sic] find out,” prosecutors said.
Plasencia admitted to distributing 20 vials of ketamine, ketamine lozenges and syringes to Perry and the actor’s live-in assistant, Kenneth Iwamasa, between Sept. 30, 2023, and Oct. 12, 2023.
Plasencia administered ketamine to Perry at the actor’s home on several occasions and left vials and lozenges with Iwamasa to administer, according to the plea agreement.
Plasencia was sentenced to 30 months in prison earlier this month.
Iwamasa admitted in court documents to administering the ketamine on the day that Perry died, pleading guilty in August 2024 to one count of conspiracy to distribute ketamine causing death. He is scheduled to be sentenced on Jan. 14, 2026, and faces up to 15 years in prison.
Two other defendants in the case — Erik Fleming and Jasveen Sangha — admitted to distributing the ketamine that killed Perry.
Prosecutors said Sangha worked with Fleming to distribute ketamine to Perry, and that in October 2023, they sold the actor 51 vials of ketamine, which were provided to Iwamasa.
Fleming pleaded guilty in August 2024 to one count of conspiracy to distribute ketamine and one count of distribution of ketamine resulting in death. He is scheduled to be sentenced on Jan. 7, 2026, and faces up to 25 years in prison.
Sangha, allegedly known as “The Ketamine Queen,” pleaded guilty in September to one count of maintaining a drug-involved premises, three counts of distribution of ketamine, and one count of distribution of ketamine resulting in death or serious bodily injury. She is scheduled to be sentenced on Feb. 25, 2026, and faces a maximum sentence of 65 years in prison.
(SEATTLE) — Police in Seattle have arrested a 21-year-old man armed with a shotgun, pistol, and carrying multiple rounds of ammunition near the Space Needle during Seattle’s New Year’s Eve celebration, authorities said.
On New Year’s Eve at approximately 7:20 p.m., patrol officers in Seattle responded to reports of a man sitting on a bench near the Pacific Science Center holding a partially concealed shotgun, according to a statement from the Seattle Police Department.
“Witnesses saw him holding the gun by the grip, causing alarm, while facing the area where spectators were gathering for the fireworks display,” police said. “The suspect, wearing all black clothing and a red hat with “WAR” written on it, cooperated with police.”
Officers safely recovered the shotgun and the suspect, who was also armed with a handgun, had a valid concealed carry permit, police said.
Police assigned to the event center arrested the man without incident, authorities said.
Seattle Police Department’s arson bomb squad were able to locate the suspect’s vehicle and swept the car for potential weapons or explosives, though none were found and it was determined the vehicle did not pose a threat, officials confirmed.
Police subsequently booked the suspect into the King County Jail for unlawful use of weapons and detectives reviewing the case referred criminal charges to the City Attorney’s Office, authorities said.
The investigation into the incident is currently ongoing.
