NEWS: The Age - 28/02/08 'Strychnine link to poisoning deaths'

'Strychnine' link to poisoning deaths
Staff Reporters
February 28, 2008 - 12:23PM

A witness to the treatment of two young men who died after an apparent poisoning says she overheard them mention the highly toxic substance strychnine.

Mystery surrounds the incident in which the two men were found by the side of the road after one of them called an ambulance around 9.45pm.

The boys were treated outside a chicken farm.

When ambulance officers arrived, Stephen Rees, 21, and Zac Moore, 19, were conscious but they died despite attempts for 90 minutes to resuscitate them.

Cheryle Evans, who lives on the farm, today said she and her partner went out to see if they could help the paramedics.

"It was a traumatic experience,'' Ms Evans said.

Ms Evans said she heard one of the men tell paramedics they had ingested strychnine.

"I heard one of the boys say to the paramedics that they had taken strychnine and then one of the paramedics said 'isn't that rat poison?'''

Earlier, Detective Senior Constable Hore said it was believed the boys had taken poison, but would not comment on whether it was strychnine.

He said the bodies were with the coroner and it would take six to eight weeks for a toxicology report.

"The bodies have been taken to the coroner's court and we believe they have been poisoned by a substance,'' Detective Senior Constable Hore said.

"The only indication is that the boys ingested some sort of poison and that's all I can comment on.''

Strychnine is a white, odourless, bitter crystalline powder commonly found in pesticides, particularly rat poison.

If taken even in small amounts, it can produce severe health effects, including death.

A Metropolitan Ambulance Service spokesman would not comment on the type of poison, if any, ingested by the men.

Before dying, one of the men told the ambulance officers that they had swallowed a substance police described as "legal".

Detective Sergeant Phil Jury said police seized several bottles of liquid at a property on nearby Pioneer Road, where neighbours said at least one of the men lived.

"We have seized a number of items from that address, but what they actually are, we won't know until they're analysed," Detective Sergeant Jury said.

An autopsy will be conducted today, but what the men drank will not be known until the results of toxicology tests are available.

A search to be carried out today will involve police and SES members and concentrate on an area around Westernport Road in Lang Lang, where the men were found, Victoria Police spokeswoman Katherine Jess said.

The town's Anglican priest, Brenda Burney, said she saw the two men "staggering" on Westernport Road around the time they called for help.

Resident Richard Westhead said Mr Moore had grown up in the town. He described him as a "good kid who always said g'day".

Matthew Burgess, Dan Oakes and Mario Xuereb with AAP.

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Third man was luring mates into drugs
Anthony Dowsley
February 29, 2008 12:00am

TWO mates who died together after ingesting a poisonous substance were being lured into drugs by a manipulative associate.

Stephen Rees, 21, and Zach Moore, 19, died on the side of a road near Lang Lang, a witness saying one of the dying boys told paramedics they had taken strychnine before he lost consciousness.

Mr Rees' parents, Steve and Sandra, said their son was loyal and hard working until a hailstorm at the market garden where he worked last year had left him jobless.

Mr Rees said he had been befriended by a man who had turned his life upside down within three months.

The grieving parents said Stephen had become distant, moving out of the family home and in with his new associate about six weeks ago.

He had celebrated his 21st birthday at the weekend and was a passenger in a 4WD that rolled near Mansfield, the badly damaged vehicle later being stopped by police.

"He was an outgoing bloke. A genuinely nice kid. We had our moments," Mr Rees said.

"The week before Christmas things weren't good and he started walking on egg shells."

Mr Rees said they had been told the pair may have taken strychnine, but was at a loss to explain why.

Strychnine is a lethal poison, often used in pesticides such as rat poison, which has been used in the production of drugs.

Stephen and Zach had been "great mates" after meeting at Koo-wee-rup Secondary College, although they were year levels apart.

Mr Rees said his son wanted to fix up his car and get his licence, but had run foul of the law for driving while unlicensed.

"Steve had lost his job and started driving his car anyway even though it was unregistered," he said.

His mother, Sandra, said her son worked hard at his labouring job for more than two years, often coming home exhausted.

She said he also had a gift of making people laugh.

"If anyone was in trouble, he'd step in to help," she said.

"He liked fishing. He was loyal to his family and he loved his Xbox.

"When he was working, he was working so hard he would come home and fall asleep before dinner. He didn't go out that much."

The parents of Mr Moore did not want to comment yesterday.

Police and State Emergency Service personnel conducted a line search on Westernport Rd where the youths had perished on Tuesday night.

It is believed they had been at a property at nearby Pioneer Rd, where Mr Rees was staying, before leaving the house and making a desperate last call to 000 as they became ill just after 9pm a kilometre down the road.

The house was raided the next day, police seizing several containers of liquid.

Cheryle Evans, who lives at a property outside which the youths perished, said she overheard one of the ill men talking with paramedics.

"The paramedics asked what they had taken," Ms Evans said.

"One of them said they had taken strychnine.

"The paramedic said 'isn't that rat poison?' "

She said as paramedics loaded Mr Rees into an ambulance his younger friend yelled to paramedics: "Don't leave me here."

Both died at the scene after paramedics and police worked on them for almost 90 minutes.

Police said yesterday it would take between eight and 10 weeks before the autopsy and toxicology reports were known.

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Strychnine is a lethal poison, often used in pesticides such as rat poison, which has been used in the production of drugs.

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well none of the articles have said the lsd word yet.

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Strychnine was killer in roadside deaths
March 3, 2008 - 3:41PM

The two men who died mysteriously on the side of the road in Victoria's east last Tuesday had ingested strychnine, police said today.

Strychnine, a deadly poison, is used primarily as a pesticide and is found in rat poison.

The two men, Stephen Rees, 21, of Lang Lang and his friend, 19, also of Lang Lang, who has not been named at his family's request, died on Tuesday night on the side of Westernport Road at Lang Lang, south-east of Melbourne.

One of them had told an emergency call operator they felt ill and local woman Cheryle Evans said she heard one of the men tell paramedics they took strychnine.

Police today said toxicology reports confirmed both men ingested strychnine.

Police said no other details from the report would be released as the coroner was continuing to investigate.

Strychnine can cause many symptoms leading to death, including uncontrollable arching of the back and neck, rigid arms and legs, jaw tightness, muscle pain and soreness and inability to breathe.

AAP

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Re the LSD myth, I'd always heard the myth that pills contained rat poison and glass, I'd never heard the LSD link before!

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