Killer Stories with Harvey Guillén - “The Teacup Poisoner” Graham Frederick Young Pt. 2

Episode Date: November 18, 2021

After serving his first prison sentence, Graham Young entered the world again, ready to start poisoning people once more. And though he largely avoided drawing suspicion — even once his victims started dying — Graham's big mouth and even bigger ego led to his own downfall. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Due to the graphic nature of this episode, listener discretion is advised. This episode contains discussions of murder that some listeners may find disturbing. Extreme caution is advised for listeners under 13. In June of 1971, 23-year-old Graham Young was working his new job at Hadlands, a manufacturer of camera parts. To be honest, Graham wasn't all that interested in photography, but he was definitely drawn to the toxic chemicals used to manufacture lenses. Those definitely intrigued him. Graham tried to hide his fascination with poisons while he was at work, but that was hard, especially when temptations kept popping up in his day-to-day duties.

As an assistant store clerk, Graham was in charge of delivering tea twice each day to the workers in the storeroom. It gave them unfettered access to all of his colleagues' drinks. Given his proclivity to poison people and watch them suffer, it was a dream opportunity, and one he couldn't let slip by. One day, he was ready to make his move, and he'd finally settled on the perfect victim. As he rolled the tea cart through the building, he paused and looked over his shoulder.

No one was watching. It was just so simple. From out of his pocket, Graham pulled a small glass file of thallium. With the flick of his wrist, he carefully sprinkled the toxic substance into his boss's cup. Graham watched as the powder slowly dissolved into the tea. then continued down the hallway. As he served his colleagues their drinks, they thanked Graham with a smile.

They had no idea what he was planning, no idea what he was capable of, no idea that they were all on his list. Hi, I'm Greg Poulson. This is Serial Killers, a Spotify original from Parkast. Every episode, we dive into the minds and madness of serial killers. Today we're finishing the tale of Graham Frederick Young, the teacup poisoner. I'm here with my co-host, Vanessa Richardson. Hi, everyone.

You can find episodes of serial killers and all other Spotify originals from Parcast for free on Spotify. Last time, we covered Graham's troubled childhood and learned how he poisoned his family as a teenager. Eventually, he was caught and sent to a psychiatric hospital for nearly a decade. But once Graham was released, he was ready to pick up right where he left off. Today, we'll follow Graham as he embraces his newfound freedom and immediately falls into old patterns. As people around him start dying, people start to panic, and Graham can't help showing off, even when it brings him undone. We've got all that and more coming up. Stay with us. This episode is brought to you by Shopify.

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Meet your match on ZipRecruiter. This episode is brought to you by Prime. Obsession is in session. And this summer, Prime Originals have everything you want. Steamy romances, irresistible love stories, and the book to screen favorites you've already read twice. Off campus, L, every year after, the love hypothesis, Sterling Point, and more. Slow burns, second chances, chemistry you can feel through the screen.

Your next obsession is waiting. Watch only on Prime. On February 4, 1971, authorities released 23-year-old Graham Young from Broadmoor Hospital in Crowthorne, England. After eight years, doctors claim Graham was cured of his obsession. with poisons. But they were very wrong. In the outside world, Graham had almost no one to turn to for help. His father disowned him after Graham slipped Antimony into his food as a teenager. His sister, 31-year-old Winifred, was the only family member still on good terms with him, even though he once poisoned her, too. Winifred offered to house Graham because she believed that her brother

was fully rehabilitated. She invited him to stay with her for a few days. before he entered his next rehabilitation stage. This was a huge risk for her. She lived with her husband, their young child, and dog at home. It would have been so easy for Graham to slip poisons to any one of them. Instead, he was well-behaved, for the most part. Graham didn't poison anyone's drinks at his sister's house, but he did enjoy a lot of alcohol.

Any chance he got, he went to the local pub and downed several pints of beer. At the bar and at home, Graham liked to get drunk and rant about his favorite subjects, Adolf Hitler's policies, World Wars 1 and 2, and British politics. But these long-winded die tribes didn't bother Winifred too much. She was just happy Graham wasn't obsessing over poisons like he once did. In comparison, these obsessions seemed harmless, so she humored him. Though he talked about other things to everyone else, Graham continued to obsess over toxicology. He even went to the local library and checked out.

several large tomes on chemistry and toxins. Winifred noticed Graham reading the books and became suspicious, but he expertly deflected her concerns, explaining that he wanted to apply to universities and needed the materials for his studies. Deceit like this came naturally to Graham, and lying to his sister didn't make him feel guilty. It had only been a few days since his release,

but Graham's obsession was overwhelming him already. He would do anything to feed his compulsive, need to learn more, even lie to the one person who trusted him. Vanessa is going to take over on the psychology here and throughout the episode. As a note, Vanessa is not a licensed psychologist or a psychiatrist, but we have done a lot of research for this show. Thanks, Greg. Last time we spoke in depth about how doctors diagnosed Graham with psychopathy as a teenager, according to Robert Hare, psychopathic individuals often display traits of deceitfulness and callousness, which means they don't feel remorse for their malicious

actions. This perfectly aligns with Graham's behavior. He often lied to get what he wanted and didn't seem capable of feeling remorse, no matter who he hurt along the way. For now, though, Winifred and her family escaped their close encounter with Graham unscathed. Soon, he moved on to the next step of his reintegration process. He attended a government training program 25 miles away in Slough. It was a course designed to rehabilitate recently released prisoners and psychiatric patients. Over the next three months, Graham stayed in a hostel and learned the skills to be a shopkeeper. He took classes during the week, and on weekends he often took an hour-long train ride to London, where he got up to no good. In the city, Graham pretended to be a university chemistry student.

Using a forged letterhead from the local college, he convinced a London pharmacist to sell him large quantities of two highly toxic chemicals, Antimony and Thalium. Graham had used both poisons before, and they were his personal favorites. When Graham returned to Slough, he hid the vials in his hostel room, where he lived with other men in the program. Graham had never been great at making friends, but he formed a bond with one of his fellow residents, 34-year-old Trevor Sparks. The pair seems to have had almost nothing in common except a shared love of drinking. Usually the duo went to the local bar for a pint, but occasionally Graham hosted Trevor in his room, where he served wine. Now, we can't say for certain exactly what happened, but given Graham's history, it seems

likely he got up to his old tricks. He certainly had access to Trevor's drink when they were in his room, and maybe he felt a familiar urge come over him. Even though he didn't have a motive for poisoning Trevor, revenge or otherwise, it's possible he just felt compelled to do it. If he didn't, he didn't, indeed poison his friend, it seems it happened because he was incapable of stopping himself. According to Robert Hare, impulsivity and a need for stimulation are key attributes found in people with psychopathy. This might be because individuals with the disorder have different brain structures. A 2011 study published by researchers from the University of Wisconsin-Madison examined how the brains of those with psychopathy were different from those without the condition.

The researchers found that psychopathic individuals were much more likely to have abnormalities in their ventromedial prefrontal cortex and the amygdala. These parts of the brain play a crucial role in empathy, fear, and anxiety. Psychopaths have a deficit in these areas, which leads to the callousness and impulsivity seen in those with the disorder, so it's possible that Graham's brain was incapable of second-guessing any of his instincts. When he had a compulsion to do something, like put poison in a wine glass, nothing in his brain made him stop to think it was wrong. It's important to note that Graham was never convicted of harming Trevor, but he certainly

told authorities that he did. Trevor's symptoms were also consistent with antimony poisoning. As we mentioned last time, antimony is a highly toxic metalloid that can cause massive gastrointestinal distress if ingested. Once the drinks started flowing, the two friends carried on through the night like nothing was amiss. Eventually, Trevor left to go to bed, feeling perfectly fine if a bit tipsy. But the next morning, Trevor was violently ill, with intense stomach pain. He loved to play soccer, but when he went to play in a match, he was too weak to run. Graham watched as his friend fell ill and as he got better.

When that happened, he invited Trevor for another drink. The next day, Trevor woke up. in agony. When he went to the hospital, doctors diagnosed him with a urinary tract infection. They prescribed antibiotics and painkillers, but the medications did nothing to help. A few weeks later, Trevor left Slough. Nevertheless, Trevor's health problems plagued him for years. Though he was lucky to have escaped with his life, Trevor reportedly never played soccer again. Back in Slough, Graham neared the end of his training program. As part of his probation, he had to meet with a psychiatrist to assess his progress. In those sessions, the analyst noted that

Graham had adjusted well to life outside of the psychiatric hospital. Of course, the doctor had no idea that Graham was back to poisoning people. Graham was getting better and better at deceit, and after years lying to them in the hospital, he was able to fool professional psychiatrist easily. After a few more weeks, Graham's training finished and he applied to be a shopkeeper at Hadlands, a company that manufactured camera lenses and equipment in the town of Bovington. In his application, Graham wrote that he had studied chemistry and toxicology for over 10 years. None of this knowledge seemed to pertain to the shopkeeper job, but Graham loved to brag about his familiarity with poisons any chance he got.

That April, Graham interviewed for a shopkeeper position at the store. During the interview, he was honest and mentioned that he had been in a psychiatric hospital, but he lied about the reason he was institutionalized. Graham claimed that he had had a nervous breakdown when his mother died in a car crash. In reality, his mother died when he was a baby, and then his stepmother died after he poisoned her. Of course, the interviewer had no idea about any of this, so they only saw Graham as an eager, professional young man.

They offered him the position on the spot. It was Graham's first job ever, and he saw it as an opportunity to rehabilitate and make a life. for himself. With that in mind, Graham rented a room from a family in Hemelhamstead, just a few miles from the store. Finally, he had a space of his own, but what he did with it was repellent. He decorated the walls with Nazi insignia and posters, the one obsession that rivaled his fascination with poisons. When he showed up to work in May, Graham's colleagues thought he was quiet and a bit odd, but overall he seemed like a nice young man. They had no idea that he'd up and

all of their lives and claim more than one of them. Coming up, Graham's co-workers become victims of his deadliest experiment yet. For centuries, the world has been fascinated by them. In films like Pirates of the Caribbean, they're portrayed as squaggering anti-heroes. In books like Treasure Island, they're fearsome villains. But who were they really? That's the question that real pirates, the new Spotify original from podcast answers. The whole thing about a pirate ship is that they were heavily man.

But you could have 100 pirates on board, so these are floating violence factories. At the same time, pirates were really fascinating characters in a way. If you were born poor, you stayed poor. Pirates, on the other hand, they were able to transcend that social boundary. They didn't see themselves just as thieves and brigands. They saw themselves as social revolutionaries. Set sail under the black flag, alongside Notorious. outdoors like Blackbeard, Charles Vane, Anne Bonnie and Mary Reid.

Join us for episodes airing weekly starting November 15th. Follow and listen to Real Pirates for free on Spotify. Are you looking for support in your weight management journey? Zepbound terseptitide may be able to help. Zepbound is a prescription medicine used with a reduced calorie diet and increased physical activity to help adults with obesity. Or some adults with overweight who also have weight-related medical problems to lose excess body weight and keep the weight off. Zep bound is approved as a 2.5, 5, 7.5, 10, 12.5, or 15 milligram injection.

Zepound contains terseptide and should not be used with other terseptide containing products or any GLP1 receptor agonist medicines. It is not known if Zepound is safe and effective for use in children. Don't share needles or pens or reuse needles. Don't take if allergic to it. Or if you or someone in your family had medullary thyroid cancer, or if you've had multiple multiple endocrine neoplasia syndrome type 2. Tell your doctor if you get a lump or swelling in your neck. Stop Zepbound and call your doctor if you have severe stomach pain or a serious allergic reaction. Severe side effects may include inflamed pancreas or gallbladder problems. Tell your doctor if you experience vision changes before scheduled procedures with anesthesia

if you're nursing, pregnant, plan to be, or taking birth control pills. Taking Zepbound with a sulfonal urea or insulin may cause low blood sugar. Side effects include nausea, diarrhea, and vomiting, which can cause dehydration and worsen kidney problems. Talk to your doctor. Call 1-800-545-9-9-9 or visit zepbounce.lily.com. Now back to the story. On May 10, 1971, 23-year-old Graham Young started work at Hadlands, a camera parts manufacturer in Bovington, England.

He was an assistant clerk, responsible for putting together orders and organizing the storeroom. His direct supervisor, 59-year-old Bob Egel, was demanding but well-liked at the company. At one point, Bob tasked Graham with delivering tea to his colleagues, not realizing how much danger he was putting his employees in. Graham didn't like being told what to do, so the idea of having a boss didn't sit well with him. He wanted to feel power over Bob, and the only thing that made him feel truly powerful was poison. In the Journal of Law and Human Behavior, psychologists Ellison Kale and Scott Lillianfeld found that, quote,

psychopathic individuals tend to respond aggressively when confronted with an ego threat. And this seemed to be the case with Graham. He perceived Bob's request to deliver tea as a threat to his ego. And because Bob was in a position of authority, Graham believed he needed to take him down. Less than a month after starting his job, he'd found. his next victim. On the morning of June 3rd, Bob drank a cup of tea laced with antimony. A few hours later, he left work early, suddenly overcome with nausea and stomach pain.

Bob stayed in bed for three days, feeling extremely ill. A week later, he returned to work partially recovered, only for the symptoms to strike again. The pattern continued for another week until Bob decided he needed a break. On June 19th, he took a vacation to the Norfolk coast. Graham was disappointed at the interruption to his experiment, but he didn't dwell on it long. He simply moved on to the next. Doing so was easy because Graham had access to all of his co-workers' drinks. One by one, he snuck poison into their cups.

He started with Ron Hewitt, slipping him antimony on a regular basis. It's odd that Graham singled Ron out because he was leaving Hadlands in sick. weeks, which meant Graham wouldn't have long to observe him. Still, he made the most of his time with Ron and poisoned him more than a dozen times before he left. Graham enjoyed using antimony, but soon it wasn't enough. He wanted something stronger. So in late June, he traveled to a London pharmacy where he purchased 25 grams of thallium, a metal even more toxic than antimony. If ingested, it can cause hair loss, seizures, and hallucinations.

Armed with the thallium, Graham returned to Bovingdon just in time for his boss's return. On June 28th, Bob came back to work feeling healthy and well rested after his week-long vacation. But it wasn't to last. That afternoon, Graham snuck a fatal dose of thallium into Bob's afternoon tea. Thallium is a slower-moving poison than antimony, so Bob didn't feel its effect until the next day. That's when his fingers became numb and he lost sensation in his feet. feet. After that, he felt a sudden and unbearable pain in his back. His wife took him to the local emergency room, where his condition only got worse. Throughout Bob's hospital stay, Graham acted like a concerned friend. He often asked about

his health and even called the hospital to talk to Bob's doctors. Of course, Graham wasn't actually worried about Bob. He just wanted updates on the thallium side effects for his journal. Under Graham's watchful eye, Bob's health deteriorated rapidly. After a day in the hospital, doctors moved him to a nearby intensive care unit where he needed his heart restarted twice. Despite his doctor's best efforts, Bob's condition only worsened, and after less than a week in intensive care, he died. Most of Hadlin's employees were in a state of shock. It had all happened so quickly, and when the time came to select a company representative, to attend the funeral on everyone's behalf, they chose Graham Young.

After all, he'd seemed so concerned for his boss, asking all those questions while he was sick. Graham agreed to go, but for the first time, he must have been worried about getting caught. An autopsy would reveal that Bob had been poisoned, and everyone would know what he'd done. Graham attended the memorial service, trying to act like nothing was wrong,

but that's when he got some good news. Bob's body was going to be cremated. Any evidence of his crime went up in flames, and he'd gotten away with murder. After Bob's death, Graham was promoted to head shopkeeper in his department. It's unclear if this had been his plan all along, or if it was just an unexpected bonus that came with the murder. Now, Graham didn't have to worry about anyone bossing him around

because he was the boss. Over the next few months, he became more outgoing at work, relishing his new position of power. But not everyone respected Graham's authority. One day, Fred Biggs, a part-time employee at Hadlands, complained about an insect problem in his garden. When Graham heard Fred's gripes, he immediately offered advice. He, of course, recommended poison. But Fred didn't take the suggestion, which Graham interpreted as a terrible insult, and just like that, he'd found his next target. In September of 1916, In 1971, about two months after Bob died, Fred started vomiting violently and had to leave work.

With the grim sense of satisfaction, Graham watched him go, eager to carry on with his dread work. Fred was going to be just one of many. After that, there was no rhyme or reason to Graham's target selection. Unlike earlier, he didn't select his victims from those closest to him. He gave poison to just about anyone he interacted with. On September 20th, 1971, 24-year-old Graham had a cup of tea with Hadlin's import-export manager. Afterward, the man became suddenly ill and had to stay home from work for the rest of the day. That wasn't enough for Graham, though.

So in early October, he upped his use of thallium. The poison was more powerful than antimony and less understood. As such, Graham was eager to study its side effects. While serving tea to his colleagues, Graham slipped a lethal dose, to clerk David Tilson's morning cup. Although thallium is considered to be tasteless, Graham added a lot of sugar to the drink just in case. Graham waited to see what would happen as his co-worker took a sip,

but it was too sweet for David, so he only took a few sips. Still, that was more than enough to bring about terrible symptoms. A day later, David started experiencing awful pain in his extremities, and soon his feet felt numb. Remarkably, David returned to work a few days later, even though his legs were a bit stiff. Seeming weirdly happy to see him, Graham greeted David and offered him some tea that, of course, contained more thallium. After that, David's health rapidly deteriorated. His chest hurt and he had trouble breathing, and he didn't need more poison tea for things to get worse. The thallium stayed in his system,

which meant that the side effects continued. After a week or two, things were so bad that he was admitted to the hospital. But as with so many of Graham's victims, David's illness confused doctors. However, with careful attention, David's health gradually improved, though not all of the side effects ceased. While at the hospital, he developed alopecia, and by the time he checked out, he was virtually bald. In the meantime, Graham had shifted his sights to another colleague. With David in the hospital, work piled up at Hadlands, so a clerk named him.

named Jethro Bat pitched in to help Graham with a backlog of orders. As they worked together, Graham droned on about the dark subjects that fascinated him. Jethro teased Graham, asking him why didn't talk about more pleasant things. Graham didn't like being teased, so he decided that Jethro would be his next victim. That same day, Graham made a cup of coffee for Jethro, carefully stirring in milk, sugar, and thalium. Graham served Jethro his coffee and watched him take a sip. Jethro grimaced immediately. It was much too strong for his liking, so he set it aside.

It was a move that likely saved his life. Still, even after just one sip, Jethro felt the effects of the thallium. A little later, he ran to the restroom, feeling violently ill. Over the next several days, Jethro felt terrible pain in his legs and feet, and he even experienced hallucinations. Fortunately, the symptoms eventually subsided, but not before most of his hair fell out. Graham took all this down in his notebook, soaking up all of his new findings. The worse the symptoms were, the more powerful he felt.

Graham had already killed his boss and poisoned several other colleagues, but he wasn't done yet. Next, he moved on to Diana Smart from the wiring department. She sometimes helped Graham when there was a backlog in his storeroom. One day when she wasn't looking, Graham put antimony in Diana's coffee, which made her so sick she had to go home. It was the beginning of a diabolical pattern. Diana would go home sick, then she'd come back to work a couple days later feeling better. But every time she returned, Graham snuck more antimony into her drink, causing her symptoms to return. By this point, the people of Baving Dunn had realized that something strange was happening at Hadlands.

In October, locals dubbed the sudden rash of illness is the Bovington Bug. Many thought perhaps that the workers were drinking contaminated water. Others speculated that residual radioactivity from a nearby airfield was to blame. But Diana Smart had a different theory. She noticed that the only person who didn't seem to be affected by the bug was Graham Young. She thought that maybe he carried a virus that he was immune to, like the infamous typhoid Mary Malin. While the townspeople speculated around him, Graham firmly believed that he had gotten away with all of the poisonings. But of course, his ego wouldn't let him stay quiet for long.

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that maybe he was somehow carrying a virus that became known as Bovington Bug. Even as people muttered around him, Graham couldn't stop himself from poisoning his colleagues. On October 30th, he served his colleague Fred Biggs three cups of poisoned tea. Four days later, Fred was admitted into the local hospital. He could barely walk and was experiencing bounce of extreme chest pain. His symptoms baffled doctors, who never seemed to suspect that he'd, ingested any poison. As more and more of their employees fell ill, Hadlands officials were forced to take action. If nothing else, the local press was having a field day with the story of the

Bovington bug, and the company needed to get a handle on the story. Hadlin's managing director contacted the Department of Health, who sent the district's medical officer of health to investigate. On November 11th, Dr. Robert Hind arrived, eager to find some answers. Dr. Hynde and his staff spent all day at the company, testing the water supply and interviewing the workers, including Graham. When asked about his colleague's ailments, Graham played dumb, fooling the interviewer as he had so many others. By the end of the inspection, Dr. Hine denounced that Hadlands was safe. According to his report, he'd found nothing alarming. He might have had he or his team thought to check Graham's pockets. Inside, he probably had enough poison to kill dozens of people.

Indeed, his handiwork was about to claim another victim. On November 19th, just a week after the inspection, Fred Biggs died. At first, Hadlin's employees were sad. Then they were furious. Now two of their colleagues had died of a mysterious illness, and many others had caught the Bovington bug. And still, no one had any answers for them. As the tension grew, many workers threatened to quit.

Curiously, even Graham started pacing the hallways. For the first time, he looked genuinely upset by what was happening. He just kept repeating the same thing. Poor old Fred, I wonder what was wrong. While Graham knew he was the one who killed Fred, it's possible he finally felt sorry for his actions. While psychopathy is often associated with a lack of empathy, some research suggests it may be a little more complicated than that.

In a 2016 study published in the journal Proceeding of the National Academy of Science, researchers studied people with psychopathic traits. They found that people who scored higher in psychopathy actually often experienced more regret than those with low scores. But here's the key. Those psychopaths didn't change their behavior based on that feeling. For the most part, Graham didn't seem to have remorse for his victims, but occasionally that cold facade cracked. That said, it's entirely possible that this grief over Fred was an act,

but his co-workers seemed to think that Graham was genuinely upset. The day after Fred's death, Hadlon's company physician, Dr. Ian Anderson, spoke to the employees. He assured the workers that nothing had been found at the workspace that could explain the illnesses and deaths. Frustratingly, it remained a confounding mystery. Then Anderson opened up the floor for questions, perhaps hoping to ease everyone. concern. The room fell silent. Graham knew he shouldn't say anything, but he couldn't help himself. He needed everyone to know he was an expert. His hubris wouldn't allow him to stay quiet. Graham's hand shot up and he asked if the doctor had considered heavy metal poisoning.

Then he pointed out that the symptoms of the mysterious illnesses lined up with that explanation. He talked at length about how alopecia can be caused by thallium, alarming his colleagues, and piquing Dr. Anderson's curiosity. It seemed odd that a layperson would have such intricate medical knowledge, particularly concerning poisons. After just a few minutes talking to him after the meeting, it was clear that Graham knew more about the subject than Dr. Anderson, who'd spent years studying medicine.

It just didn't add up. Following the meeting, Dr. Anderson suggested that the police immediately look into Graham. Something wasn't right there. He could feel it. When the call came through, Detective Chief Inspector, John Kirkpatrick jumped into the case. Looking at Hadlin's employee records, he saw that the string of illnesses lined up with Graham Young's start at the company.

Then a forensic scientist told the detective that each of the victim's symptoms lined up with heavy metal poisoning. Next, Kirkpatrick called Scotland Yard and asked for any records on Graham and found out that he'd poisoned his family and childhood friend years earlier. Stun, Kirkpatrick immediately drafted a warrant for arrest and assembled a team to apprehend Graham. Until the police arrived to arrest him, 24-year-old Graham had no idea he'd so thoroughly incriminated himself. But on November 20, 1971, he was arrested in his kitchen halfway

through making a sandwich. Graham was informed that he was being brought in on suspicion of murdering Fred Biggs and Bob Egel. Hearing the allegations, he played dumb and tried to insists that both men had died of a virus, but no one was swallowing that particular brand of poison. Not this time. After they had him in custody, investigators ransacked his boarding room. Inside his closet, they found a massive stash of toxic chemicals. As the search continued, police discovered the most condemning evidence of all, Graham's notebook, wherein he tracked all of his poisonings, using initials for each of his victims. At first, Graham claimed that the journal was a novel he was working on,

but Detective Kirkpatrick wore him down. Eventually, Graham came clean to each of the poisonings and surprised everyone by confessing to killing his stepmother when he was a teenager. Three days later, he was formally charged with the murders of Bob Egel and Fred Biggs, as well as two counts of attempted murder and six counts of causing grievous bodily harm. He wasn't charged for his stepmother's death, because there was no physical evidence to tie him to her death. Even with Graham's confession, the investigation continued.

Medical examiners looked into the bodies of his victims. They found thallium in Fred's organs and in Bob Eggles' ashes. It was more than enough to show that Graham poisoned Bob and Fred. Not that they really needed it by that stage. When his trial began in June of 1972, Graham couldn't help showing off his knowledge even after he pleaded not guilty. On the stand, he spoke at length about his understanding of toxicology,

but stopped short of admitting to poisoning his colleagues. Trying to do damage control, Graham's lawyer claimed that his client's knowledge of poisons didn't mean he was guilty, but the damage had been well and truly done. On June 29, Graham was found guilty of murdering Fred Biggs and Bob Egel and of poisoning Diana Smart and Ron Hewitt. Before sentencing, Graham announced that he was, didn't want to return to a psychiatric institution, and the judge respected his request. Instead,

Graham ended up in Parkhurst, a maximum security prison on the Isle of Wight. He was to remain there for the rest of his days. Graham continued to be notorious both in and out of prison, which he loved. In fact, he was such a horrific figure that Madame Trousseau's museum made a wax sculpture of him to be placed in the museum's chamber of horrors. It was the kind of garish honor Graham relished, and one that would outlive him. After 18 years behind bars, he died of heart failure at 42 years old. Still, Graham Young's legacy is more than just a wax statue in a tourist trap. Because of his crimes, the British government forever changed how they dealt with probation

and psychiatric institutions. As for Graham himself, many people called him a genius, pointing to his incredible, We're incredible wealth of knowledge about toxicology. But his singular focus on poison wasn't a display of intelligence, but a dangerous obsession that went unchecked for too long. And in the end, it proved to be deadly. Thanks again for tuning into serial killers. We'll be back next week with a brand new story.

For more information on the teacup poisoner, amongst the many sources we used, we found the elements of murder, a history of poison, John Emsley, extremely helpful to our research. You can find all episodes of Serial Killers and all other Spotify originals from Parcast for free on Spotify. We'll see you next time. Have a killer week.

Serial Killers is a Spotify original from Parcast. Executive producers include Max and Ron Cuddler, sound designed by Carrie Murphy, with production assistance by Ron Shapiro, Trent Williamson, Carly Madden, and Joshua Kern. This episode of serial killers was written by Matt Hartman, with writing assistance by Mallory Cara and Joel Callan, fact-checking by Anya Barely, and research by Brian Petrus and Chelsea Wood. Serial killers stars Greg Poulson and Vanessa Richardson. For centuries, the world has been fascinated by them, Blackbeard, Charles Vane, and Bonnie. Who were they really? Real Pirates is a new Spotify original from Parkast.

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