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Idaho Case May Be Connected to the 1982 Tylenol Murders, Officials Say
Investigators say DNA testing and old records identified the man, and they are examining whether he was linked to seven Chicago-area cyanide deaths.
On Wednesday, Ada County investigators identified the 'Unknown Wanderer' as Dr. Mathew Francis Betkouski, a man found dead in a Boise church in 1982, announcing a potential link to the unsolved Chicago Tylenol murders.
Detective Tim Cooper reopened the cold case in 2019 after tracing an engraved key from Betkouski's body to a Jacksonville, Florida address, finally resolving the decades-long identity mystery.
Colleagues reported Betkouski discussed 'the perfect crime' involving cyanide, and detectives found Chicago maps and photos in his belongings, though investigators noted he used sodium cyanide rather than the potassium cyanide in the poisonings.
Ada County officials are not naming Betkouski a suspect, stating they cannot place him in Chicago during September 1982, and have shared findings with Chicago police for their ongoing investigation.
The case will be featured in an Unsolved Mysteries documentary, Unmasking the Tylenol Killer, premiering October 9 on The Roku Channel, as Sheriff Matt Clifford said authorities hope the exposure generates new leads.