Heavy metal poisoning blamed in killing

Heavy metal poisoning blamed in killing

www.edmontonsun.com

Calgary forensic psychiatrist Dr. Liya Xie concluded Sok was in a “state of delirium” at the time he strangled Huon and was therefore suffering from a mental disorder.

Xie also concluded Sok’s delirious state was the likely result of his long-term occupational exposure to toxic heavy metal combined with the acute toxicity from the inhalation of the fumes of the burning “magic” belts.

Xie’s conclusions were backed up by later testing of Sok’s blood which revealed he had “excessive amounts” of certain heavy metals such as lead, cadmium and manganese.

(visit the link for the full news article)

"Magic" beads.... Just like all the other snake oil charlatans hawk...

This snake oil is poisonous though.

And then people ask 'why are you so hard on fraudsters?'....




I would like to know if the other "occupational" heavy metal poisoning he received was from where he is living now or if it was in his home country. Maybe I missed it in the article... But I think Canada should have better working conditions than this...



www.edmontonsun.com
(visit the link for the full news article)

This isn't the first time that they have blamed Ozzy and Marilyn Manson for.........
ah ok. a different heavy metal.

You are correct about the article skipping certain details, about which country. They were rather vague with that. This is definitely an odd story, but it seems that there were many warning signs that were overlooked. Even if they weren't completely overlooked, actions could/should have been taken by those who cared for her.

As well, he likely suffered acute heavy metal poisoning at the time of the killing from trying to melt on the stove “magic” metal belts from Cambodia which he and his wife had been wearing in an effort to help her get pregnant.

Personally, I disagree with the assessment of him not being held criminally responsible. Even if this is caused from a delusional state brought on by toxic metals, he caused the toxins to be released within his own apartment. He should not only be held criminally responsible for her death, but he should also be held criminally responsible if anybody else in that apartment building has had any type of reaction from the toxic fumes he caused to enter into their air.

Originally posted by BrokenCircles
This isn't the first time that they have blamed Ozzy and Marilyn Manson for.........
ah ok. a different heavy metal.

 

You are correct about the article skipping certain details, about which country. They were rather vague with that. This is definitely an odd story, but it seems that there were many warning signs that were overlooked. Even if they weren't completely overlooked, actions could/should have been taken by those who cared for her.

As well, he likely suffered acute heavy metal poisoning at the time of the killing from trying to melt on the stove “magic” metal belts from Cambodia which he and his wife had been wearing in an effort to help her get pregnant.

Personally, I disagree with the assessment of him not being held criminally responsible. Even if this is caused from a delusional state brought on by toxic metals, he caused the toxins to be released within his own apartment. He should not only be held criminally responsible for her death, but he should also be held criminally responsible if anybody else in that apartment building has had any type of reaction from the toxic fumes he caused to enter into their air.

Hearing you, but contextualy I must point out that there were other heavy metal sources affecting this mans life.

According to court documents, the Cambodia-born man developed heavy metal toxicity from being exposed to harmful vapours while working at a city scrap yard.

Its entirely possible that without either the scrap yard exposure, or the acute exposure in his appartment, this man might have merely become ill , rather than flipping out. With both he was screwed from the get go. Perhaps the fact that this gentleman had been exposed to harmful vapours over a long period at work, meant that he didnt realise the potency of what he was burning.

TrueBrit

reply to post by TrueBrit

Ok. So after which event did he decide to strangle his wife, and then bury her body under bags of rice, clothing, and garbage in the bedroom??

Was it after a long hard day of work at the scrap yard?
OR
Was it after he was using his indoor stove in an attempt at melting 'magic' metal belts??

His actions ended her life.
He should be held accountable.

reply to post by BrokenCircles


For all we know it could be both. Its very easy to be judgemental when not in possession of the facts, and even easier without understanding the neurochemical imbalances that the fellow was likely to be under, given the depth and length of his heavy metal exposure.
I understand your assertion that a man must be held to account for his actions, but I see this as no different to the case of the man who strangled his wife in his sleep due to a sleep disorder. He was a sleep and not concious of, or in control of his actions. The level of medical proof required to clear him of murder was certainly deep and involved, and no doubt the same strictures were applied to this case. It is clear that the longer term exposure the gentleman in this article was subjected to, in the scrap yard, was not something he was either aware of , or in control of. That accute exposure he suffered when melting metal belts was unfortunate, but not deliberate. It is not as if he jammed his veins with coc aine or heroin and then decided in a deliberately induced state of mental dysfunction, to destroy his wife.
If he had been doing drugs, a concious choice, and if he had not ALREADY been exposed to dangerous vapours over a long period , over which he had no control, then I would utterly support the full wieght of the law being placed upon his shoulders, and grinding him to dust beneath its awesome mass.
However, there are very many mitigating circumstances here, and there was clearly no intent on the part of the accused to produce the end result, and there is every probability that he did not know there was any danger in his actions, until he came out of whatever vaporous stupor he found himself in, to realise the truth of what had occured.
Its terrible to be sure, but to treat this man as if he had made a free will , concious choice to kill, or to deliberately remove his ability to reason is wrong.

A short report on the affect on cognitive function when subject has previously been exposed to lead.
www.neurology.org...

The wiki for Manganese, which contains the section entitled Clinical Toxicity, which explains the danger of long term chronic exposure.
en.wikipedia.org...

Although I have not found any specific information to link Cadmium poisoning with neurological/cognitive impairment , I have discovered that it can cause anosima, which would render the sufferer incapable of realising that he is breathing highly toxic compounds.
en.wikipedia.org...

While the only other effects of the Cadmium seem to be largely related to organ damage and arthritic diseases, it is probable that an imbalance caused by an organ slowly dying could result in behavioural changes in of itself. Kidney damage or shrinkage is mentioned in the segment. Renal failiure is one of the possible dangers.
en.wikipedia.org...

If you look at the section which bullet points the main worries of renal failiure , you will notice the following:

Healthy kidneys produce the hormone erythropoietin which stimulates the bone marrow to make oxygen-carrying red blood cells. As the kidneys fail, they produce less erythropoietin, resulting in decreased production of red blood cells to replace the natural breakdown of old red blood cells. As a result, the blood carries less hemoglobin, a condition known as anemia. This can result in:
Feeling tired and/or weak
Memory problems
Difficulty concentrating
Dizziness
Low blood pressure

Under this assault, are you telling me that you would be able to control your actions? That you would even be cognitively aware of them? If so, I would love to study your innards, because if the information I have come by is anything at all to go on, a person would be lucky to be breathing normaly after the life this gentleman had, let alone capable of concious decision making.
There was no premeditation in this act, no free will choice to kill. The chances are this man was not even aware of his actions , or capable of preventing them at the time of his wifes death. It is a tragedy , but clearly not a murder.