Ok, this morning I was reading the news and happened upon a story of domestic murder.
While stories of bitter wives and husbands committing murder aren’t unheard of in the news, I was a little offended that the suspect, a biochemist by profession, wasn’t smarter or a little more creative (Disclaimer: I do not endorse murder of any kind, not do I want to make light of the sufferings of the victim). The killer, who will likely be sentenced to life without possibility of parole, enlisted the help of a former lab assistant to “capture” the ex-husband with the aid of a chloroform soaked rag and a stun gun. While he was unconscious, she placed his body in a 55-gallon tank of HCl which she had placed in a rented public storage unit.
Honestly, how could she not think she would get caught?
Furthermore, shouldn’t a biochemist be able to come up with a more creative way to commit the crime? A layman could think of chloroform and strong acid.
On a side note – that is one dedicated lab assistant. Either that, or it is just another example of how we are so underpaid in academic science that $2K to aid in a murder plot seems like a reasonable idea.
Her publication record is hardly that of a criminal mastermind…
I would have gone for phenol, personally. You?
A layman (and many television show writers) could have come up with that plan, but few would have access to the supplies necessary to carry it out. Good point about the devoted lab assistant. Creepy.