Rodney Whitchelo was a British law enforcement officer and criminal convicted of

blackmail Blackmail is an act of coercion using the threat of revealing or publicizing either substantially true or false information about a person or people unless certain demands are met. It is often damaging information, and it may be revealed to f ...

and

food contamination Food contamination refers to the presence of harmful chemicals and microorganisms in food, which can cause consumer illness. This article addresses the chemical contamination of foods, as opposed to microbiological contamination, which can be found ...

. He poisoned baby products as part of a

plot Plot or Plotting may refer to: Art, media and entertainment * Plot (narrative), the story of a piece of fiction Music * ''The Plot'' (album), a 1976 album by jazz trumpeter Enrico Rava * The Plot (band), a band formed in 2003 Other * ''Plot ...

to extort

Heinz The H. J. Heinz Company is an American food processing company headquartered at One PPG Place in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The company was founded by Henry J. Heinz in 1869. Heinz manufactures thousands of food products in plants on six contin ...

, causing a

baby food Baby food is any soft easily consumed food other than breastmilk or infant formula that is made specifically for human babies between four and six months and two years old. The food comes in many varieties and flavors that are purchased ready- ...

scare in 1989. Whitchelo, who was dubbed the "consumer terrorist", committed his crimes while serving as a detective of the Scotland Yard.Lordan, Robert. (2023-03-14). “The Supermarket Poisoner.” Taxi, vol. 536, p. 18.

Biography

Whitchelo was born in 1947 in

Hackney, London Hackney is a district in East London, England, forming around two-thirds of the area of the modern London Borough of Hackney, to which it gives its name. It is 4 miles (6.4 km) northeast of Charing Cross and includes part of the Que ...

. He went to Hackney Secondary Modern and was noted for his aptitude as a student. His first job was with the chemical firm

Johnson Matthey Johnson Matthey is a British multinational speciality chemicals and sustainable technologies company headquartered in London, England. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 250 Index. History Early years ...

. He later secured employment in a small marketing company in

Greenwich Greenwich ( , ,) is a town in south-east London, England, within the ceremonial county of Greater London. It is situated east-southeast of Charing Cross. Greenwich is notable for its maritime history and for giving its name to the Greenwic ...

. By 1976, Whitchelo got bored with his line of work so he enrolled at

Hendon Police College Hendon Police College is the principal training centre for London's Metropolitan Police. Founded with the official name of the Metropolitan Police College, the college has officially been known as the Peel Centre since 1974, although its origi ...

. After completing his training, he became an arms officer and was eventually promoted to a detective sergeant position. He then joined Scotland Yard's regional crime squad. While still in law enforcement, Whitchelo set up his own computer company which failed and plunged him into debt. In 1988, he retired from service citing health concerns. In the same year, however, while he was still working for Scotland Yard and desperate for money, Whitchelo hatched a plot to extort money from big companies. This came after he attended lectures on consumer

terrorism Terrorism, in its broadest sense, is the use of criminal violence to provoke a state of terror or fear, mostly with the intention to achieve political or religious aims. The term is used in this regard primarily to refer to intentional violen ...

and corporate blackmail. The plot involved spiking products of food giants

and

Pedigree Pedigree may refer to: Breeding * Pedigree chart, a document to record ancestry, used by genealogists in study of human family lines, and in selective breeding of other animals ** Pedigree, a human genealogy (ancestry chart) ** Pedigree (animal ...

with caustic acid used in bleach products and broken up

razor blade A razor is a bladed tool primarily used in the removal of body hair through the act of shaving. Kinds of razors include straight razors, safety razors, disposable razors, and electric razors. While the razor has been in existence since be ...

s. He demanded approximately £4 million from these companies as part of his extortion scheme. It was learned that he purchased jars of baby food and returned them to store shelves. When authorities examined one of these, they found it contained poison that could have killed 27 children."Forgive me, says baby food poisoner as he goes free; Ex-policeman in evil blackmail plot gets out eight years early. - Free Online Library". ww.thefreelibrary.com/ref> Heinz was forced to withdraw baby food from store shelves amounting to £30 million in lost revenue. Whitchelo then used his experience to keep ahead of the authorities investigating his extortion scheme. Eventually he turned his attention to the reward money offered for information about the perpetrator. He contacted the officers investigating the case to claim the £100,000 reward in exchange for information about the food contamination. He was caught withdrawing the money offered from a cashpoint. When he was arrested he initially blamed fellow police officers, claiming that they framed him. In 1990, he was sentenced to 17 years imprisonment.Campbell, Duncan; Sellman, Mark; Campbell, By Duncan (1999-04-08). "Met detective's failed extortion plot became Pearce's model". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077 Whitchelo was released eight years early.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Whitchelo, Rodney Extortionists English criminals