ETE Reman in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where a boss allegedly slipped steer wheel fluid in his employee’s drink (Google Maps).
Police in Wisconsin have detained a man accused of pouring steering wheel fluid into a coworker’s drink, supposedly because the coworker “was always talking trash” to him.
Milwaukee officers arrived around 3 p.m. on June 5 at ETE Reman, a company specializing in car transmissions, due to an altercation between two employees, according to a criminal complaint obtained by Law & Crime. The officers spoke to the individual involved, who shared that the day before, someone had placed an unidentified liquid into his Arizona iced tea. This caused him to feel unwell, leading to a visit to urgent care for medical attention, as per the complaint.
The man explained to the police that he came to work around 1:45 p.m. and left two drinks, a fruit punch and an Arizona Ginseng Tea, in the break room freezer. When he later wanted to drink the iced tea, he realized the bottle’s rim felt oily and emitted a strong chemical scent. He was concerned it might be poisoned.
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The victim showed the drink to a couple of co-workers, including his boss, 60-year-old Steven R. Cox.
Human resources reviewed video of the breakroom and determined Cox was the culprit, the affidavit said. It allegedly showed Cox walking into the breakroom holding two Pure Leaf tea bottles. Cox approached the freezer where the victim put his drink and looked around to see if anyone else was there, the affidavit said.
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The video allegedly showed Cox pick up the victim’s iced tea and appear to pour something into it from the Pure Leaf bottle. He then went to the sink and washed out his Pure Leaf bottle before throwing it away, cops said. A human resource manager retrieved the Pure Leaf bottle from the trash and it apparently had the same greasy substance and smell as the victim’s iced tea, police said.
The victim said he’s had issues with Cox in the past but thought they had ironed them out. When the HR person confronted Cox, he denied any involvement but allegedly said the victim was “always glaring at him.”
When officers spoke with Cox, he allegedly admitted to pouring power steering fluid into the victim’s drink. He said he’s “always had an issue” with the victim and heard he was “always trash talking him,” the affidavit states. Cox allegedly described the incident as a “prank.”
Cox was arrested on a charge of placing foreign objects in edibles. He was taken to jail and has since posted bond. Court records say he was assigned a public defender. His next court date is scheduled for June 28.
