A dentist arrested for the murder of his wife and mother of his six children allegedly researched poisons that cannot be detected in an autopsy before mixing his wife’s protein shakes with arsenic and cyanide to start a new life with his lover.
James Toliver Craig, 45, of Aurora, Colorado, used a shared computer at his workplace to run multiple online searches for poison before his wife Angela, 43, died at the hospital this week, according to her warrant.
Searches on YouTube and Google included: ‘how many grams of pure arsenic will kill a human’. ‘Is arsenic detectable at autopsy?’ ‘Top 5 Undetectable Poisons That Show No Signs Of Foul Play’, ‘How To Make Poison’ and ‘Top 10 Deadliest Plants (Can Kill You)’.
Craig was at the same time exchanging “intimate” and “sexually explicit” emails with an Austin, Texas orthodontist, and took the woman to see him as his wife fought for her life in the hospital before doctors turned off her life support. .
The affidavit said Craig planned to: “end his wife’s life by finding ways to kill someone undetected, providing her with poisons that align with her hospitalized symptoms, and working to start a new life with (her lover).”
James Toliver Craig was arrested for murder on Sunday after detectives discovered his wife Angela Craig, 43, had been fatally poisoned.
James and Angela Craig pose for a family photo with their six children, ages 8 to 20.
The dentist allegedly ordered the arsenic online on February 27 and received a package at his home on March 4, police said, who arrested him on suspicion of first-degree murder.
Angela soon began experiencing symptoms of dizziness and headaches and visited the hospital several times before being admitted for the last time on Wednesday March 15, but doctors were unable to determine the cause of her illness and family members thought it was an infection. of the paranasal sinuses.
Craig reportedly told an office manager on March 6 that he was expecting a package and not to open it, according to the affidavit.
He allegedly gave Angela “extra protein” that morning before a workout “because she was feeling sluggish” but took her to the hospital.
“After training, Angela passed out and became dizzy, and eventually James took Angela to the hospital,” the affidavit reads.
Angela returned to the hospital on March 9 and was released again on March 14 when mystery surrounded the cause of her symptoms.
Craig’s second package arrived at work on March 13, and when an employee opened the box, he found a biohazard label and a container marked “Potassium Cyanide.”
She googled the chemical compound and realized that the symptoms of cyanide poisoning were similar to the symptoms Angela was experiencing.
When the employee heard that Angela had been readmitted to the hospital on March 15, she told Craig’s business partner about her startling discovery, then told a nurse during a visit to check on her.
The nurse called the police and her death was investigated by detectives from the Major Crimes Homicide Unit who determined that she had been poisoned.
“As a mandated reporter, the nurse called the police and an investigation was conducted,” the affidavit reads.
Angela’s condition deteriorated rapidly when she began to have seizures and at 2 pm on March 16 she was placed on a ventilator in the intensive care unit.
Craig told investigators that his wife had been intentionally taking an opioid overdose since they filed for divorce in December 2022.
Police searched his home and business seizing protein powder, shakers, a computer tablet, phones and two Ziploc bags of powdered substances.
Craig was a practicing dentist at the Summerbrook Colorado dental office, which filed for bankruptcy in 2021.
Craig’s internet history showed that he placed an order on Amazon for ‘Arsenic Metal 99.9999% Crystalline Metalloid 10 Grams for Element Collection’ among other poisons he ordered online.
An analysis of data from his devices revealed the chilling searches he had conducted online, including a $13 Amazon order for ‘Arsenic Metal 99.9999% Crystalline Metalloid 10 grams for Element Collection.’
When police checked his email account jimandwaffles@gmail.com, they found additional poison purchases, according to the affidavit.
There was an order on March 9 from Midland Scientific for Sigma 207810-25G, which is the technical term for potassium cyanide.
Emails between Craig and a Midland Scientific employee who requested additional information for the order show the dentist claiming he was a surgeon performing craniofacial reconstruction.
Craig also attempted to purchase $330 worth of 3 1mg oleandrins from AdooQ Bio Science, but the order was intercepted by police.
Angela was pronounced dead at 4:29 p.m. on March 18 after doctors made the decision to turn off her life support.
Craig brought the woman he had exchanged sexually explicit messages with from Texas to Colorado while Angela was on life support.
“It appears that James was taking this woman to Denver while his wife and the mother of his children were dying at the hospital,” police said.
Craig had told the poison vendor that he was a surgeon and intended to use the potassium cyanide for a medical procedure.
He proceeded to give the seller his dental license number and work email to order the poison.
Text messages Craig sent to his wife Angela while she was hospitalized after he allegedly poisoned her
A person close to Angela Craig’s family told the Daily Beast that she was a “phenomenal woman, outgoing and the best mother you can imagine.”
“She was very supportive of her husband, even working in his practice during financial difficulties.”
Craig and his practice, Summerbrook Dental, filed for bankruptcy in 2021, according to court records.
The couple had been married for more than 20 years and were the parents of six children, five girls and one boy, ages eight to 20.
The individual who spoke to the Beast said, ‘One of her brothers who lives in Salt Lake came out to be with her.’
There was, until his admission to the hospital, any reason to suspect foul play.
But, after Angela was hospitalized, James apparently vanished.
“He hadn’t been with the family much in recent days,” which “raised some suspicions,” the source said.
In a 2021 press release, Craig described himself as “happily married” to Angela.
The statement went on to say that the couple “have six children and they all enjoy the outdoors, especially camping, snowboarding, fishing, hiking, rock climbing and mountain biking.”
“They also enjoy visiting theme parks and often travel to Disney, Universal and Sea World.”
He also noted that James Craig volunteered with WE CAN HELP, an anti-bullying program sponsored by the Denver Police Department.
Poisoning is a rare method of murder. According studiespoisoning represents less than 0.5 percent of cases.
