WEBVTT - The curry killer: How Kew helped bring a murderer to justice 0:00:03.540 --> 0:00:05.270 Okay. Is your girlfriend conscious? 0:00:06.720 --> 0:00:07.390 Yeah, she's- 0:00:07.390 --> 0:00:07.650 Is she all right? 0:00:08.350 --> 0:00:11.090 Yes. Shes' [inaudible 00:00:12], because- 0:00:11.869 --> 0:00:14.720 Okay. So, what makes you think somebody poisoned your food? 0:00:14.900 --> 0:00:17.681 Because, she was my ex- girlfriend. She came to visit my home. 0:00:17.681 --> 0:00:20.689 You think your ex- girlfriend's done it. 0:00:20.689 --> 0:00:20.739 Yes, sir. 0:00:26.070 --> 0:00:30.900 January, 2009. A West London man and his fiance sat 0:00:30.900 --> 0:00:33.559 at their dinner table to share a meal. And to 0:00:33.559 --> 0:00:38.690 discuss their wedding planned for Valentine's Day. Just hours after 0:00:38.710 --> 0:00:43.110 he made this 999 call. Lakhvinder Cheema was dead and 0:00:43.110 --> 0:00:47.499 his fiance critically ill. The dead man's suspicion lay with 0:00:47.500 --> 0:00:51.129 his spurned ex- girlfriend. But where was the proof that 0:00:51.129 --> 0:00:53.460 this mother of three was behind the plot? 0:00:54.450 --> 0:00:58.210 Aconite poisoning is extremely rare. And indeed, a lot of 0:00:58.210 --> 0:01:01.630 doctors haven't even heard of it before. Let alone know 0:01:01.630 --> 0:01:04.740 what its effects would be or how to identify a 0:01:04.740 --> 0:01:05.929 poisoning of this case. 0:01:06.369 --> 0:01:09.080 Today we'll find out what happened when Kew were called 0:01:09.080 --> 0:01:10.830 upon to help catch a killer. 0:01:11.429 --> 0:01:14.420 You have this very sophisticated equipment. That allows us to 0:01:14.420 --> 0:01:17.020 have this fingerprint of the chemicals. 0:01:17.220 --> 0:01:20.950 I'm James Wong, and you're listening to Unearthed: Mysteries from 0:01:20.950 --> 0:01:30.280 an unseen world. From Royal Botanic gardens, Kew. Lakhvinder Cheema 0:01:30.280 --> 0:01:33.699 was known to his friends as lucky. He and his 0:01:33.700 --> 0:01:38.610 girlfriend Gurjeet Choongh, were busy planning their wedding. Choongh was 0:01:38.630 --> 0:01:41.889 21. And had been in a world in relationship with 0:01:41.890 --> 0:01:46.709 exciting times ahead. But early in their engagement. Choongh had 0:01:46.709 --> 0:01:52.270 made an unexpected discovery. A woman called Lakhvir Singh, revealed 0:01:52.270 --> 0:01:55.850 that she and her fiance had been lovers for 15 0:01:55.850 --> 0:01:59.930 years. Lucky had ended the affair. But his ex lover 0:01:59.970 --> 0:02:05.300 had been heartbroken sending messages that became increasingly more abusive. 0:02:06.600 --> 0:02:13.139 But was this a motive for murder? Lakhvir Singh, was 0:02:13.139 --> 0:02:16.670 a mother of three. Her husband was suffering with cancer 0:02:16.739 --> 0:02:22.100 in hospital. In January, 2009. Singh went to Lucky's house 0:02:22.100 --> 0:02:25.310 in Feltham. And was let in by the lodger. Who 0:02:25.310 --> 0:02:27.329 saw her go into the fridge and take out a 0:02:27.329 --> 0:02:31.829 container of Curry. It was this Curry that lucky and 0:02:31.829 --> 0:02:33.500 his fiance were to later eat. 0:02:35.880 --> 0:02:36.139 And what makes you say somebody poisoned your food? 0:02:37.790 --> 0:02:41.860 After symptoms has started to appear. Lucky's sister and nephews 0:02:41.930 --> 0:02:44.989 helped get him and Gurjeet in the car to West 0:02:45.019 --> 0:02:50.299 Middlesex Hospital. But within hours he was dead. Gurjeet was 0:02:50.299 --> 0:02:54.029 placed into a medically induced coma, while scientists sought to 0:02:54.030 --> 0:02:57.780 identify the substance. This ultimately saved her life. 0:02:58.600 --> 0:03:01.929 I'm Luke Smith. I am a consultant in acute medicine, 0:03:01.929 --> 0:03:04.480 with an interest in toxicology. We see a lot of 0:03:04.480 --> 0:03:10.210 things like paracetamol poisoning, alcohol poisoning, things like that. Aspirin, 0:03:10.230 --> 0:03:14.100 occasionally carbon monoxide. In terms of plant poisonings, not as 0:03:14.100 --> 0:03:17.889 common, but still we do see things. Plants generally tend 0:03:17.889 --> 0:03:21.019 to produce a lot of chemicals which have effects. And 0:03:21.519 --> 0:03:24.879 it depends on how you define plant poisoning. For example; 0:03:24.880 --> 0:03:28.299 cocaine itself would be a plant poison in its truest 0:03:28.299 --> 0:03:31.419 sense of the word. So, we see quite a lot 0:03:31.419 --> 0:03:34.530 of that actually coming in into St. Thomas's hospital anyway. 0:03:35.030 --> 0:03:38.780 Aconite poisoning is extremely rare. And indeed, a lot of 0:03:38.780 --> 0:03:42.200 doctors haven't even heard of it before. Let alone know 0:03:42.200 --> 0:03:45.300 what its effects would be or how to identify a 0:03:45.300 --> 0:03:49.180 poisoning of this case, in a poisoned patient. In this 0:03:49.180 --> 0:03:53.530 particular case, the poisoning was so severe that the evolution 0:03:53.530 --> 0:03:57.550 of symptoms was very rapid and the patients became extremely 0:03:57.550 --> 0:04:02.050 poisoned, extremely ill, very quickly. So much so, that the 0:04:02.050 --> 0:04:05.839 timelines involved were so short that identifying the patients had 0:04:05.839 --> 0:04:09.460 even been poisoned was a tricky one in itself. Cheema, 0:04:09.510 --> 0:04:13.270 who was the gentleman who died. Suspected he'd been poisoned 0:04:13.369 --> 0:04:16.360 and told the ambulance crew that when they called in the 0:04:16.360 --> 0:04:18.779 ambulance. So, we had it in the back of our minds 0:04:18.800 --> 0:04:23.050 that this might be a possibility. But because they deteriorated 0:04:23.050 --> 0:04:25.580 and he died so rapidly, there was no time to 0:04:25.580 --> 0:04:29.979 identify what the agent was. It was very interesting because 0:04:30.409 --> 0:04:34.320 it is such a rare poison, particularly in the Western 0:04:34.320 --> 0:04:38.210 world. In India it's more common. And it's also used 0:04:38.210 --> 0:04:41.870 as a herbal remedy in Chinese herbal medicine. But it's 0:04:41.870 --> 0:04:45.330 virtually unheard of in the UK or in America or 0:04:45.330 --> 0:04:48.659 the Western world. From a physician point of view. The 0:04:48.659 --> 0:04:51.580 whole goal of treatment in this particular case would be 0:04:51.580 --> 0:04:54.990 to try and save the patient's life. So, we would 0:04:54.990 --> 0:04:57.669 have an algorithm that we have drummed into us from 0:04:57.669 --> 0:05:01.739 medical school about how to approach acutely unwell patients, whatever 0:05:01.740 --> 0:05:04.740 is wrong with them. And it's to stabilize each individual 0:05:05.409 --> 0:05:08.810 body system in turn to prevent the patient deteriorating or 0:05:08.810 --> 0:05:12.360 dying. It's called the ABCDE approach. That is what we 0:05:12.450 --> 0:05:14.560 the doctors looking after these patients would have tried to 0:05:14.560 --> 0:05:17.060 have done in the first instance. So it wouldn't necessarily 0:05:17.260 --> 0:05:20.580 have been about identifying a poison or an agent in 0:05:20.580 --> 0:05:23.529 particular. It would be to try and save their lives. 0:05:23.529 --> 0:05:29.600 Proving a clear connection between ex- girlfriend Singh, the Curry 0:05:29.659 --> 0:05:34.219 and the toxin that killed lucky wasn't straightforward. The first 0:05:34.219 --> 0:05:38.710 challenge was to identify the toxin scientists tested for nicotine 0:05:38.760 --> 0:05:41.029 and arsenic, but have ruled both out. 0:05:41.349 --> 0:05:44.890 Police were called and the National Poisons Information Service were 0:05:44.890 --> 0:05:48.260 called. Who gave advice on what were the best tests 0:05:48.260 --> 0:05:51.270 to do to try and identify and as yet unknown 0:05:51.270 --> 0:05:54.950 poison and what tests could be sent off. So, things 0:05:54.950 --> 0:05:58.099 like contents of the stomach, a postmortem could be sent, 0:05:58.140 --> 0:06:00.140 blood samples could be taken. And we have to make 0:06:00.140 --> 0:06:02.580 sure that we take the right blood samples. And they're 0:06:02.580 --> 0:06:05.289 in the right blood tubes. And given this is a 0:06:05.289 --> 0:06:07.270 legal case. There has to be a chain of evidence 0:06:07.270 --> 0:06:09.940 and a chain of custody observed as well, to ensure 0:06:09.940 --> 0:06:13.750 that any evidence that is secured and in identifying the 0:06:13.750 --> 0:06:15.620 poison can be used in a court of law as 0:06:15.620 --> 0:06:19.659 well. Lots of poisons don't have specific antidotes. And treatment 0:06:19.659 --> 0:06:23.370 is supportive, rather than trying to find an agent to 0:06:23.370 --> 0:06:27.180 counteract the effect of the poison. So, the approach from 0:06:27.180 --> 0:06:29.619 the National Poison Service at the time, would have been 0:06:29.799 --> 0:06:33.379 similar to any unknown poisons to just try and save lives. 0:06:33.799 --> 0:06:36.570 But it would have been important that they had in 0:06:36.570 --> 0:06:37.940 the back of their minds as well. We need to 0:06:37.940 --> 0:06:41.500 find out what this was because this has legal implications. 0:06:41.630 --> 0:06:43.510 And we need to think about what samples we need 0:06:43.510 --> 0:06:48.189 to be collecting and how we do that. The main 0:06:48.599 --> 0:06:53.150 presenting symptom they had initially was vomiting. And that's quite 0:06:53.150 --> 0:06:58.449 a nebulous and ubiquitous symptom. But they progressed rapidly in 0:06:58.690 --> 0:07:02.069 their poisoning. They then developed pins and needles in the 0:07:02.070 --> 0:07:06.020 face, particularly around the mouth and then extending to their hands 0:07:06.020 --> 0:07:09.850 as well. And that became quite disabling to the point 0:07:09.850 --> 0:07:12.880 when they weren't able to use things like telephones and 0:07:12.890 --> 0:07:17.790 things like that. They also then developed visual disturbances and 0:07:17.790 --> 0:07:22.580 ultimately Cheema lost his ability to see quite rapidly. That 0:07:22.580 --> 0:07:26.300 led on to muscle weakness, into changes in sensation in 0:07:26.500 --> 0:07:30.420 the limbs. But the most significant from a medical point 0:07:30.420 --> 0:07:33.080 of view effect of the poison, was what it was doing 0:07:33.080 --> 0:07:37.160 to the poisoned patient's hearts. We can see that they 0:07:37.160 --> 0:07:40.330 develop multiple arrhythmias of the heart. The electrical activity of 0:07:40.330 --> 0:07:43.410 the heart was massively disturbed such to the point where 0:07:43.630 --> 0:07:46.319 particularly in Cheema, it was unable to sustain the mechanical 0:07:46.320 --> 0:07:48.420 ability of the heart to pump blood around the body. 0:07:48.960 --> 0:07:53.190 This happened very rapidly. We're talking about between 60 to 0:07:53.190 --> 0:07:57.940 120 minutes after poisoning. The severe symptoms of poisoning occurred. 0:07:58.840 --> 0:08:03.540 Aconite poisoning in particular is interesting because it has an 0:08:03.540 --> 0:08:07.340 unusual mechanism of poisoning at the cellular level. It's relatively 0:08:07.340 --> 0:08:11.950 unique. Other plant poisons, which have similar effects work in 0:08:11.950 --> 0:08:14.819 different ways. Things like mandrake and hemlock work in slightly 0:08:14.820 --> 0:08:18.050 different ways. They tend to block electrical signals, whereas Aconite 0:08:18.050 --> 0:08:21.389 tends to increase them. And that's an unusual mechanism of 0:08:21.390 --> 0:08:25.800 action. And it's also arguably harder to treat. It also 0:08:25.800 --> 0:08:30.309 tends to have similar effect to nerve agent poisoning as 0:08:30.310 --> 0:08:32.250 well. A lot of the symptoms you see are similar 0:08:32.250 --> 0:08:34.410 to those that you would see in nerve agent poisoning. 0:08:34.670 --> 0:08:37.720 And indeed, some of the chemicals in the Aconite plant 0:08:37.720 --> 0:08:40.239 actually do work in a similar way to nerve agent 0:08:40.240 --> 0:08:44.650 poisoning. They block an enzyme called acetylcholinesterase. Which ultimately leads 0:08:44.650 --> 0:08:47.090 to the same symptoms that you would get in nerve 0:08:47.090 --> 0:08:50.829 agent poisoning. It's also an incredibly rare poison. Which makes 0:08:50.829 --> 0:08:53.410 it interesting by very into its nature. 0:08:56.900 --> 0:09:00.760 Few people have heard of forensic botany. A discipline that can stretch 0:09:01.350 --> 0:09:04.880 from the analysis of clues left in traces of ancient 0:09:04.880 --> 0:09:09.760 pine grains, to the information coded in tree rings. Whether 0:09:09.760 --> 0:09:13.500 it's a detailed understanding of the makeup of aquatic environments, 0:09:13.730 --> 0:09:17.229 to the chemical composition of soil, to the hidden rules 0:09:17.230 --> 0:09:20.839 of how ecosystems work. Knowing what to look for is 0:09:20.839 --> 0:09:25.420 half the challenge in helping investigators solve mysteries. It is 0:09:25.420 --> 0:09:28.770 here onsite at Kew, that scientists are able to help 0:09:28.770 --> 0:09:34.320 investigators solve their mysteries. I met professor Monique Simmonds, [ OBE to 00:09:33] 0:09:34.360 --> 0:09:35.599 to find out more 0:09:36.069 --> 0:09:40.270 I'm Monique Simmonds. And I am Deputy Director of Science 0:09:40.270 --> 0:09:42.240 at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. 0:09:42.939 --> 0:09:47.429 Believe it or not, the tiniest samples can offer vital clues and 0:09:47.429 --> 0:09:51.760 evidence in a number of situations. Monique explained how plants 0:09:51.760 --> 0:09:54.679 can leave their trace, even when a perpetrator doesn't. 0:09:56.530 --> 0:09:59.199 Plants can be used in so many ways. They can 0:09:59.199 --> 0:10:03.819 be used to identify a scene by what could be 0:10:03.819 --> 0:10:07.939 on say, a pullover, the victim's clothes, their shoes, in 0:10:07.939 --> 0:10:11.420 the grooves of the shoes, the seeds, the particles. They 0:10:11.420 --> 0:10:15.770 can often identify where a crime took place. And then 0:10:15.770 --> 0:10:19.319 you've got how it's possibly being used if it's a 0:10:19.319 --> 0:10:26.040 plant toxin. So, different aspects of botany can assist with 0:10:26.530 --> 0:10:30.190 where plant took place. And possibly if a plant was 0:10:30.209 --> 0:10:36.199 used. Which plants and therefore, where it could have come 0:10:36.199 --> 0:10:39.829 from. So you can use it in different ways. But 0:10:39.829 --> 0:10:43.819 you need to have that basic botanical knowledge. Depending on 0:10:43.819 --> 0:10:47.329 the role that the plant plays, you'll need to have 0:10:47.620 --> 0:10:52.240 different aspects of plant science coming into it. So, pollen 0:10:52.309 --> 0:10:56.600 or even the hairs on the back of a leaf 0:10:56.600 --> 0:11:00.750 of a plant that can cling to your clothing can 0:11:00.750 --> 0:11:04.220 be preserved for many years. 0:11:04.819 --> 0:11:08.079 Plants can't run away or hide from threats. So they've 0:11:08.079 --> 0:11:11.740 had to evolve a different evolutionary strategy. In the form 0:11:11.740 --> 0:11:15.240 of toxic compounds that can act as a defense mechanism. 0:11:15.809 --> 0:11:18.660 Monique and her colleagues were brought in to help identify 0:11:18.660 --> 0:11:23.610 the mysterious poison when events were still unfolding. Police suspected 0:11:23.610 --> 0:11:26.559 murder, but the evidence Kew could provide would help them 0:11:26.559 --> 0:11:27.459 find the answers. 0:11:28.780 --> 0:11:31.569 Initially when they got the emergency telephone. Then when they 0:11:31.569 --> 0:11:36.420 got the two patients into hospital. There were some common 0:11:36.420 --> 0:11:43.279 characteristics. And that was blurred vision, numbness, a very shallow 0:11:43.329 --> 0:11:49.609 heartbeat. And that indicated some form of toxicity. So they 0:11:49.610 --> 0:11:53.069 rule out the usual things that could be associated like 0:11:53.069 --> 0:11:56.890 arsenic, et cetera. The patients didn't have some of those 0:11:56.890 --> 0:12:01.069 characteristics like diarrhea and other things. So it looked like 0:12:01.069 --> 0:12:04.780 it was having an effect on the nervous system and 0:12:04.780 --> 0:12:11.140 that leads you to possibly plant based poisons. And some 0:12:11.140 --> 0:12:14.579 of these that are known to affect the nervous system 0:12:14.579 --> 0:12:19.319 can be alkaloids, a group of chemicals from plants. That 0:12:19.319 --> 0:12:23.880 are known to cause effects on the nervous system. But, at 0:12:24.610 --> 0:12:29.270 that stage, they couldn't detect them. Because we'd already done 0:12:29.329 --> 0:12:34.010 work for the National Poisonous Unit. Some of those involved, 0:12:34.110 --> 0:12:36.749 knew about some of the work that we've been doing 0:12:36.750 --> 0:12:37.269 at Kew. 0:12:37.709 --> 0:12:40.439 At this stage information was strictly on a need to 0:12:40.439 --> 0:12:44.010 know basis. The symptoms had led scientists to look at 0:12:44.150 --> 0:12:48.149 aconitum, which you might know as monkshood or Wolf's bane. 0:12:50.010 --> 0:12:53.640 We were asked to see if we could assist with 0:12:53.640 --> 0:12:56.589 a toxicity. So we hadn't got a lot of background 0:12:56.589 --> 0:13:01.839 information other than the fact that the people involved in 0:13:01.839 --> 0:13:06.790 the case thought that toxicity could be associated with alkaloids 0:13:07.270 --> 0:13:11.599 that come from aconitum species. But their test should show 0:13:11.599 --> 0:13:15.990 that that wasn't the case. We were not told anything 0:13:15.990 --> 0:13:21.390 about the victims or how this had happened. We were 0:13:21.429 --> 0:13:26.199 just asked if we could identify these because they're associated 0:13:26.199 --> 0:13:31.119 with a potential murder case. Then you get more details 0:13:32.110 --> 0:13:35.209 as you guided through. So, sometimes they don't want to 0:13:35.209 --> 0:13:40.469 totally lead you. We're usually not told everything. Because they 0:13:40.469 --> 0:13:45.219 want to have some form of independence. So, it's gradually 0:13:45.219 --> 0:13:46.210 revealed to us. 0:13:48.300 --> 0:13:51.170 In any poisoning case, it's a race against time to 0:13:51.170 --> 0:13:54.670 identify the chemical toxin that caused the symptoms. 0:13:56.420 --> 0:13:59.020 If you can have a knowledge about what the plant 0:13:59.020 --> 0:14:04.469 is and the toxin associated with that adverse response. Then 0:14:04.469 --> 0:14:10.319 that's where the medical profession can be more accurate in 0:14:10.319 --> 0:14:13.900 the form of antidote that there will use because many 0:14:13.900 --> 0:14:18.380 of those antidotes are pretty strong in themselves. And sometimes 0:14:18.380 --> 0:14:21.590 it can be very dangerous to use the wrong material. 0:14:21.930 --> 0:14:24.440 You can cause more problems. But if you can have 0:14:24.450 --> 0:14:28.990 it really directed by an accurate identification of what the 0:14:28.990 --> 0:14:33.140 toxins are that can assist greatly. The ability of having a 0:14:33.140 --> 0:14:36.210 real professional in, member of my team, or it's with 0:14:36.210 --> 0:14:40.120 Jeff Kite. To be able to get that really accurate 0:14:40.410 --> 0:14:44.359 analysis done at each stage is really a key to 0:14:44.360 --> 0:14:48.860 solve this issue. So it's like having a unique botanical 0:14:48.860 --> 0:14:52.970 fingerprint of that particular sample that could be followed. 0:14:53.810 --> 0:14:56.870 Monique explained how samples were released to Kew for testing 0:14:57.090 --> 0:14:59.640 as the investigation and the questions evolve. 0:15:01.570 --> 0:15:05.700 So was it aconitine or is it a related species? 0:15:06.150 --> 0:15:09.880 So at that stage, we didn't know all the details. That 0:15:09.880 --> 0:15:15.270 only became clearer later on. They said they be able to send 0:15:15.270 --> 0:15:20.940 us some samples of the blood or samples from the digestive 0:15:20.940 --> 0:15:25.990 track of one of the victims. And then the Curry. Could 0:15:25.990 --> 0:15:28.850 we look at the Curry? And then they said that 0:15:28.850 --> 0:15:33.249 they had got some leaf powder from a bag that 0:15:33.350 --> 0:15:37.759 had been found in Mrs. Singh's Pocket. And we said, " 0:15:37.760 --> 0:15:39.470 Well, we'll start off on that one. That would be 0:15:39.470 --> 0:15:41.760 the easiest thing. If you think there is a link." 0:15:42.030 --> 0:15:45.200 Thanks for listening to Unearthed. I'll be back again in 0:15:45.200 --> 0:15:47.729 just a minute. But first here's a message from our 0:15:47.729 --> 0:15:48.950 supporter, Kim Cattrall. 0:15:51.380 --> 0:15:55.779 As a charity, the Royal Protonic Gardens, Kew is facing 0:15:55.780 --> 0:15:59.910 a severe funding crisis, right now. The impact of Corona 0:15:59.910 --> 0:16:05.260 virus has created a financial shortfall of 15,000, 000 pounds. This 0:16:05.260 --> 0:16:08.440 money is vital for the upkeep of these beautiful Botanic 0:16:08.440 --> 0:16:14.450 Gardens. And crucial to continuing its global conservation work. Plants 0:16:14.450 --> 0:16:17.540 and fungi hold many of the answers to the world's 0:16:17.540 --> 0:16:23.070 biggest challenges such as climate change, food security and biodiversity 0:16:23.070 --> 0:16:26.850 loss. And Kew needs to play a role in furthering 0:16:26.850 --> 0:16:31.840 the science and identifying desperately needed solutions. If there's one 0:16:31.840 --> 0:16:35.249 positive thing that could come out of this pandemic. It 0:16:35.250 --> 0:16:38.109 will be to encourage each and every one of us 0:16:38.109 --> 0:16:41.779 to look a fresh and with urgency at these global 0:16:41.780 --> 0:16:46.609 challenges. If you are enjoying this podcast and feel inspired 0:16:46.609 --> 0:16:49.930 by the work that Kew does. Please go to Kew. 0:16:49.930 --> 0:16:54.239 org to donate today. To help not only protect Kew, 0:16:54.810 --> 0:16:57.979 but also preserve the future of our planet. 0:16:59.640 --> 0:17:03.619 Because we understand the processes behind plants. It's possible for 0:17:03.620 --> 0:17:05.969 the team at Kew to work with a wide range 0:17:05.970 --> 0:17:07.850 of samples in forensic cases. 0:17:08.139 --> 0:17:10.810 Yes, we have an idea because of work that's been 0:17:10.810 --> 0:17:13.239 done on the, by synthetic processes of these plants. And 0:17:13.240 --> 0:17:16.540 sometimes have therefore that they can be broken down. Now, 0:17:16.540 --> 0:17:19.469 if we get something from the gut. It may be that it 0:17:19.470 --> 0:17:24.320 hasn't been totally digested. So, sometimes it's easier to be 0:17:24.330 --> 0:17:28.280 able to identify a plant matter in the gut. It 0:17:28.350 --> 0:17:31.050 will depend on what part of the gut. In some 0:17:31.050 --> 0:17:33.960 cases we will get the blood samples. If that is 0:17:33.960 --> 0:17:36.359 the case, then we need to know what are the 0:17:36.359 --> 0:17:42.919 breakdown components associated with the particular plant metabolites. In this 0:17:42.919 --> 0:17:45.450 case, we didn't need to go as far as that. 0:17:45.450 --> 0:17:48.030 Because we could link what had been found in the 0:17:48.030 --> 0:17:51.139 pocket. What had been found in the Curry. What had been 0:17:51.139 --> 0:17:54.260 found in the samples that were found in the fridge. 0:17:54.850 --> 0:18:00.010 And then in the stomach contents. If had it been later 0:18:00.010 --> 0:18:03.210 on, we might not have been able to do it. 0:18:03.280 --> 0:18:06.290 But unfortunately, it was a very short time before the 0:18:06.330 --> 0:18:08.500 victim died in this particular case. 0:18:09.790 --> 0:18:11.109 So what did they find? 0:18:11.540 --> 0:18:14.740 Some people wouldn't realize at Kew, that we'd have this 0:18:14.740 --> 0:18:18.770 very sophisticated equipment that allows us to do the chemical 0:18:18.770 --> 0:18:23.040 work. And that's done by a method called liquid chromatography- 0:18:23.040 --> 0:18:28.070 mass spectrometry. That allows us to have this fingerprint of 0:18:28.070 --> 0:18:33.379 the chemicals. We could see that there were 19 alkaloids 0:18:33.429 --> 0:18:37.100 in the sample. Now that's quite complex. But one of 0:18:37.100 --> 0:18:42.909 them was in high amounts. And that was [ pseudo I-carnitine 00:18: 48]. 0:18:46.159 --> 0:18:51.429 Pseudo I- carnitine, an extremely toxic alkaloid chemical. Is found 0:18:51.429 --> 0:18:54.169 within the roots of a plant known as Indian monkshood 0:18:54.850 --> 0:19:01.879 or aconitum ferox. This discovery was absolutely key in understanding what 0:19:01.879 --> 0:19:05.929 had happened. It hadn't shown up in previous tests simply 0:19:05.929 --> 0:19:08.189 because the scientists didn't know to look for it. 0:19:10.619 --> 0:19:16.300 Now, that is something that the previous people hadn't spotted. Now, why 0:19:16.649 --> 0:19:20.149 we had it on our database. Is the fact that 0:19:20.149 --> 0:19:25.729 we had previously dealt with some toxicity problems associated with 0:19:25.869 --> 0:19:31.859 this plant material. And this plant material we thought, it 0:19:31.859 --> 0:19:36.810 actually doesn't come from a British plant. It's a possibility 0:19:37.109 --> 0:19:42.770 it comes from a Indian plant and that we were 0:19:42.770 --> 0:19:46.490 able to put the pieces of the jigsaw together. So, 0:19:46.490 --> 0:19:51.320 once we got the chemical fingerprints. We could then go 0:19:51.320 --> 0:19:56.159 back from the material that been found in the pocket 0:19:56.679 --> 0:20:00.869 to look at the Curry. And we could see that 0:20:00.869 --> 0:20:04.779 the Curry had a similar type of profile. And then 0:20:04.780 --> 0:20:08.489 we could link that to the victim. You need to 0:20:08.490 --> 0:20:11.850 know what to look for. And then the methodology that 0:20:11.850 --> 0:20:16.249 would enable you to detect it. Because in some cases, 0:20:16.780 --> 0:20:21.709 there aren't commercial libraries that have all the ingredients saying 0:20:21.710 --> 0:20:24.209 that could be potential toxics. You have to build those 0:20:24.379 --> 0:20:27.129 libraries up. Which is one of the things that Kew 0:20:27.129 --> 0:20:29.749 has been doing. And of course, the other thing that 0:20:29.750 --> 0:20:34.100 we have at Kew. Is knowledge about the uses of 0:20:34.100 --> 0:20:37.320 plants. Now, some of those could be bad uses I. 0:20:37.320 --> 0:20:40.750 e; plants that are known to be toxic and possibly 0:20:40.970 --> 0:20:44.940 have been known to be used in homicide. And we 0:20:44.940 --> 0:20:49.159 collect that type of information. So we just knew that 0:20:49.310 --> 0:20:55.470 historically, some plants have been used in India for homicide. 0:20:56.090 --> 0:21:00.950 And just having that knowledge enables us to sometimes make 0:21:00.950 --> 0:21:05.600 those links. Especially, when we have knowledge about the symptoms 0:21:05.600 --> 0:21:08.530 that the person has, who died. So we can put 0:21:08.530 --> 0:21:10.310 the bits of the jigsaw together 0:21:12.040 --> 0:21:15.200 When it came to the Curry Killer Case. Establishing what 0:21:15.200 --> 0:21:18.459 the mysterious substance was. Was not only key in the 0:21:18.460 --> 0:21:22.920 race to find lifesaving treatment, but also in seeking justice. 0:21:23.300 --> 0:21:27.610 That unique plant fingerprint allowed Monique to establish the species 0:21:27.669 --> 0:21:31.750 and possible origin of this plant. This intern shed further 0:21:31.750 --> 0:21:32.889 light on events. 0:21:33.590 --> 0:21:36.639 When we thought, Oh right, this is a plant that 0:21:36.659 --> 0:21:39.510 comes from India. Or let's say, that part of Asia. 0:21:40.240 --> 0:21:43.440 It's kind of Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, that kind of area. 0:21:44.050 --> 0:21:47.429 Is it possible that she'd visited or it could have 0:21:47.429 --> 0:21:51.320 been that she got it from a herbalist. But you're 0:21:51.619 --> 0:21:56.960 thinking maybe not. Of course, that becomes important. You could 0:21:56.960 --> 0:21:59.080 show that this had been planned. 0:22:07.760 --> 0:22:14.299 Aconitum is a notoriously toxic genus containing over 250 species. You 0:22:14.300 --> 0:22:18.040 might have heard it's common names like devil's helmet, monkshood, 0:22:18.109 --> 0:22:24.130 or wolfsbane. Yep, it's that mysterious plant mythologized by [ Arvid Keats 00: 0:22:24.139 --> 0:22:28.149 22:22]. And of course your favorite Teen Werewolf novels. It 0:22:28.149 --> 0:22:31.949 typically has blue purple hooded flowers. But there's quite a 0:22:31.950 --> 0:22:35.770 lot of variation across the genus. The alkaloid toxin it 0:22:35.770 --> 0:22:41.210 produces aconitine, is notoriously difficult to detect. In fact, the 0:22:41.210 --> 0:22:43.949 last time an English court convicted anyone of using the 0:22:43.950 --> 0:22:50.219 poison, was in 1882. When a doctor called George Henry Lamson used 0:22:50.220 --> 0:22:52.919 it to poison his brother- in- law. It's a fast 0:22:52.919 --> 0:22:58.010 acting neuro and cardiotoxic. And victims appear to have asphyxiated. 0:22:58.290 --> 0:23:00.540 Monique explains a little more about the history of the 0:23:00.540 --> 0:23:03.810 species we're familiar with in the UK and it's cousin 0:23:03.960 --> 0:23:04.740 aconitum ferox 0:23:06.419 --> 0:23:09.929 Often it hasn't been used in a bad way. It's 0:23:09.929 --> 0:23:13.640 known to contain poisons. The other bit of the story 0:23:13.800 --> 0:23:16.700 is the fact for a long time, in the past it had been 0:23:18.070 --> 0:23:22.050 used. Because it was actually very difficult to detect these 0:23:22.050 --> 0:23:26.379 types of compounds. So, people have got away with using 0:23:26.379 --> 0:23:31.129 some of these plants as toxins. Because the investigators hadn't 0:23:31.129 --> 0:23:35.929 got the ability to detect it unless they found the 0:23:35.929 --> 0:23:40.469 plant material had been used. So, this was a species 0:23:40.530 --> 0:23:44.719 called ferox. That comes from India this had been used in 0:23:44.720 --> 0:23:47.899 the case. So it's not the British species that's often 0:23:47.899 --> 0:23:50.159 goes under the name of Wolf bane. So it's an 0:23:50.159 --> 0:23:55.189 example you could say of 19 century methods being detected 0:23:55.189 --> 0:24:01.179 by 21st century techniques. We've advanced in our ability to 0:24:01.179 --> 0:24:06.070 detect toxins that we would not have had in the 19th 0:24:06.070 --> 0:24:07.439 and earlier 20th century. 0:24:08.810 --> 0:24:11.190 I asked Monique what we knew about the modern users 0:24:11.490 --> 0:24:14.670 of this species of aconitum ferox in India. 0:24:15.169 --> 0:24:20.540 It is used sometimes as a medicine in low concentrations. 0:24:20.830 --> 0:24:23.490 And sometimes it will be therefore used if it's a 0:24:23.490 --> 0:24:27.000 trained herbalist. It will be used say, to clear the 0:24:27.000 --> 0:24:33.040 body. And sometimes it's used for anti- inflammatory conditions. But 0:24:33.280 --> 0:24:37.950 it would only be used for very short time. It's 0:24:37.950 --> 0:24:41.379 sometimes also used in treatment of eye problems. But in 0:24:41.379 --> 0:24:46.820 the hands of a real professional herbalist maybe okay. But 0:24:47.010 --> 0:24:51.730 sometimes they don't fully know enough about the plant to 0:24:51.730 --> 0:24:55.109 be aware of some of the problems associated with continual 0:24:55.109 --> 0:24:58.100 use. People should think twice about using some of these 0:24:58.100 --> 0:25:04.270 plants. They had tried to put evidence like this together. 0:25:04.429 --> 0:25:07.949 And it doesn't always work because you only have part 0:25:07.949 --> 0:25:12.570 of a story. I think in this particular case, the 0:25:12.580 --> 0:25:16.780 police were able to link the fact that Mrs. Singh 0:25:16.780 --> 0:25:21.179 had been over to India in a potential had got 0:25:21.179 --> 0:25:27.210 some material. She was in possession of the raw material. 0:25:27.689 --> 0:25:31.990 Was evidence that it was in the Curry, there's evidence 0:25:31.990 --> 0:25:34.959 that that Curry was then used as part of a 0:25:34.960 --> 0:25:38.899 meal, with the two people that suffered. And the fact 0:25:38.899 --> 0:25:41.790 that we could then link that with one of the 0:25:41.840 --> 0:25:45.770 victims. So, if we could put every bit of the 0:25:45.770 --> 0:25:50.270 stage together. Enabled the police to have a pretty solid 0:25:50.740 --> 0:25:56.100 case. And then we found out afterwards that evidently there was an attempt before. 0:25:56.609 --> 0:26:00.490 The evidence gathered including Kew's vital findings. Were enough to 0:26:00.490 --> 0:26:04.580 convict a murderer. The judge, Paul Worsley at the Old 0:26:04.580 --> 0:26:07.419 Bailey condemn Singh's actions in court. 0:26:07.840 --> 0:26:11.070 You are not just a spurned lover. You did not 0:26:11.070 --> 0:26:15.550 simply explode in anger at your rejection. You set about 0:26:15.649 --> 0:26:18.639 a cold and calculating revenge. 0:26:19.119 --> 0:26:22.820 For the first time in decades. An Aconitum murderer was 0:26:22.820 --> 0:26:27.679