Johnson & Johnson recalled its Extra-Strength Tylenol capsules in 1982 after seven people died from cyanide poisoning in the Chicago area.
The deaths were caused by capsules that had been removed from store shelves, poisoned with potassium cyanide, and returned to stores. Investigators found no evidence that the contamination occurred during normal factory production, making the incident a criminal tampering case rather than a conventional manufacturing recall.
Johnson & Johnson and its subsidiary McNeil Consumer Products withdrew about 31 million bottles of Tylenol and offered replacements. The company also introduced tamper-resistant packaging, including sealed boxes and shrink bands, which became widely adopted across the pharmaceutical industry.
The incident is often confused with later Tylenol recalls caused by manufacturing problems. The 1982 case remains unsolved, although James William Lewis was convicted of extortion after sending a letter demanding money; he was not convicted of the killings.