A California engineer, David Xu, has been caught on hidden-camera footage allegedly pouring a toxic substance into his colleague’s water bottle.
Xu, who worked at Berkeley Engineering and Research, pleaded no contest to a felony poisoning charge in 2023 after being accused of poisoning his colleague, Rong Yuan, with cadmium, a toxic heavy metal.
Yuan reportedly suffered unexplained illnesses, including severe vomiting and hair loss, before setting up a hidden camera at her workplace in 2019.
The footage showed Xu tampering with her water bottle. Investigators subsequently found toxic levels of cadmium in the water, while blood tests also revealed elevated levels of the substance in Yuan and two of her relatives.
Xu was initially charged with attempted murder but later reached a plea deal that resulted in probation rather than a lengthy prison sentence.
Now, after completing his probation, Xu is seeking to have his criminal conviction dismissed.
Yuan has opposed the move, citing the lasting effects of the poisoning and concerns about the potential removal of his conviction from future background checks.
