Abolutely Dumbfounded

[Guest LadyC]

i have to agree with iamyours. the police definitely need to be brought in on this. please tell me you have not thrown the container away? it needs to be analyzed to find out exactly WHAT was put in it.

[backontrack]

Knowing that so many of you are wise and clear thinkers I'm going to ask for advice (something I almost never do!) I'll try to be brief.

I work in an office with one other person. We have a coffee pot and refrigerator which is only used by the two of us and a friend in another area who doesn't have those things.

I bought a pint of half and half and put it in the refrigerator. No one else uses the half and half; my coworker drinks her coffee black. I used about half of the container before the problem occurred. A few days ago, I made the coffee and poured some of the half and half into my cup. It tasted AWFUL! When I smelled the container I detected something like floor wax or brass cleaner or something of that nature. I touched my finger to the half and half and tasted it...........it tasted like one of those chemicals. What I'm saying is that someone laced my coffee cream with some type of substance that shouldn't be ingested. There is no chance that it was contaminated when I bought it because it was half gone before it was contaminated. There is no doubt about that fact because it is so vile I couldn't drink more than one sip (thankfully!)

My problem is that I strongly suspect my office mate yet have no idea why she would do such a thing! There is no problem between the two of us or between myself and anyone else who works at my company. I can't talk to my family about this; they would want to call the police. I can't talk to anyone at work about it because I could be totally wrong and would ruin my office mate's career. I can't ignore it because I could very well be working with a psychopath!

Thoughts? Anyone?

Before you jump to any conclusions here think because this is a serious accusation and could have huge repercussions if you

[Wingwalker]

First I would like to thank God that you were wise in the matter to not drink it. After reading the posts, I still wonder if the cleaning crew could have done it. Does the cleaning crew know that only you use the half and half? If they do not know that, its possible that they were targeting the entire office. Understand, this is only a thought that I have as I realize I was not there first hand.

Thank you for sharing this.

[RustyAngeL]

Hello friend, You must call the police and alert your boss. All of this can be done without pointing fingers and if your office mate has nothing to do with this then they will be equally grateful because this is a very serious matter. Be firm and polite and pray before and after you do so. I will pray for you also. In Gods love Tina

I agree with two points. Alert the police and your boss. Then use see through containers. Even if you have to take them home with you every night. Whoever did this could have made you very sick and I hope they are caught. Yes call the police, let your boss know and use the see through containers. Praying for you sis.

[ladypeartree]

whilst I totally agree that this must be looked into can I please ask ...was the container open? is there ANY chance that it is contaminated with fluid from the fridge itself? if you have a leak somewhere in the cooling system then could it have got into the container ? It would take only a very small amount of cooling liquid to make the whole thing not only taste terrible but be poisoned ...if this is the case then you really need to sort it out .

Praying for you and your co workers in all this

[MorningGlory]

Thanks to all of you for your advice. I brought the container home with me and put it in the fridge (I am single so no problem there.) I have decided to not jump to conclusions either; sometimes the most obvious thing is the wrong one. I am going to my boss tomorrow morning, without making any acccusations, and am going to follow my meeting with an e-mail outlining our conversation. Then I am calling the police.

Running this situation by all of you here, who are not biased one way or the other, was the right thing to do. Sometimes we all need to look at a situation through the eyes of others before we can see it clearly.

Thanks again!

[MorningGlory]

whilst I totally agree that this must be looked into can I please ask ...was the container open? is there ANY chance that it is contaminated with fluid from the fridge itself? if you have a leak somewhere in the cooling system then could it have got into the container ? It would take only a very small amount of cooling liquid to make the whole thing not only taste terrible but be poisoned ...if this is the case then you really need to sort it out .

Praying for you and your co workers in all this

Oops! I missed your post, ladypeartree. No, although the container had been previously opened, it's one of those with a screw on cap, the top was on tight. The first thing I did was check to see if something had leaked into the refrigerator and there was nothing there.

Thanks for the prayer; we seem to be in need of them!

[kittyjo]

Thanks to all of you for your advice. I brought the container home with me and put it in the fridge (I am single so no problem there.) I have decided to not jump to conclusions either; sometimes the most obvious thing is the wrong one. I am going to my boss tomorrow morning, without making any acccusations, and am going to follow my meeting with an e-mail outlining our conversation. Then I am calling the police.

Running this situation by all of you here, who are not biased one way or the other, was the right thing to do. Sometimes we all need to look at a situation through the eyes of others before we can see it clearly.

Thanks again!

You might want to put the container in a zippy and then in the freezer... Not only can the contents be examined but it might be possible to pick up a print if it has not been over handled. Concider putting in a new open container pouring some product out to make it appear used and see what happens, could be a new opportunity to catch the persons prints if they try it again.

I recall the incident in the news of an employee peeing in the break room coffee, he was caught with a nanny-cam.

Most definately use the individual creamer products from now on... Costco, Sam's and stores like Smart & Final carry a large variety as well as larger quanity economy packages.

[sierra21]

Ok I hate to burst everyone's bubble-- but I think it's highly unlikely that the police are going to have time to "analyze" the "contaminated cream". And they might not even have the resources depending on where you live. And considering the fact that there is next to no evidence...i doubt theyre going to do much for you. It's more likely that they'll tell you to keep your eyes open for anything else suspicious.

Unfortunately office politics usually occur and the police are hesitant to get involved in any situation that doesn't have some very strong evidence. All you have is cream which was -apparently- (not that im saying you're lying, but from the police perspective) contaminated with something of which may or may not be toxic. It could also be a practical joke (ive had a coworker spike my juice with buckley's which was just nasty)...that you took seriously. Who knows!

I would say just keep your eyes open and be safe. Don't leave any more edible products in the common area.

[MorningGlory]

Ok I hate to burst everyone's bubble-- but I think it's highly unlikely that the police are going to have time to "analyze" the "contaminated cream". And they might not even have the resources depending on where you live. And considering the fact that there is next to no evidence...i doubt theyre going to do much for you. It's more likely that they'll tell you to keep your eyes open for anything else suspicious.

Unfortunately office politics usually occur and the police are hesitant to get involved in any situation that doesn't have some very strong evidence. All you have is cream which was -apparently- (not that im saying you're lying, but from the police perspective) contaminated with something of which may or may not be toxic. It could also be a practical joke (ive had a coworker spike my juice with buckley's which was just nasty)...that you took seriously. Who knows!

I would say just keep your eyes open and be safe. Don't leave any more edible products in the common area.

You may very well be right, sierra, but I am going to make a report. While practical jokes are common in all offices, attempted murder is not and, if it IS a poisonous substance, that's what it comes down to. The cream contains something metallic that smells like Brasso so.......I have to take it seriously. As for leaving anything else edible or drinkable in that office....no way!

If the police won't or can't do anything, at least I have documented what happened.