North Carolina Woman Charged with Attempted Murder for Drugging Husband's Energy Drink
A woman from North Carolina is facing an attempted murder charge for allegedly drugging her husband's energy drink to incapacitate him. Cheryl Harris Gates, 43, was arrested after reportedly adding prescription medications to her husband's Celsius energy drink with the intent of causing him to black out or become incapacitated.
According to her husband, he experienced incapacitation on two occasions and found a foreign, controlled substance in his drink. The couple was living separately at the time of the incidents.
Authorities claim that Gates conducted online searches to research incapacitating and lethal drug combinations between July and September. They also found evidence that she purchased materials to carry out a plan to poison her husband, including a capsule filling kit, syringes, medical droppers, medications, and scales.
In addition to drugging her husband's drink, Gates is accused of placing a tracking device on his vehicle and breaking his window. At the time of her arrest, she was working as a pediatric occupational therapist at Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools.
Gates is facing charges of attempted murder, stalking, property damage, and contaminating food or drink to render someone mentally incapacitated or physically helpless. She was denied bond and is scheduled to appear in court on October 30.
The Mecklenburg County Sheriff's Department has not responded to requests for comment, and Gates does not have legal representation at this time.