導讀:據德國小報《圖片報》報道，德國男子疑18年間默默毒死21名同事。

Authorities in Germany launched a probe Wednesday into a string of 21 deaths over nearly two decades after the arrest of a man suspected of trying to poison a co-worker’s sandwich.

在逮捕了一名涉嫌試圖往同事的三明治里下毒的男子后，德國相關部門周三對過去近20年21人的死因展開了調查。

The 56-year-old man, named only as Klaus O, was detained back in May after surveillance video showed him opening a colleague’s lunchbox and putting a suspicious powder inside, German tabloid Bild reported.

德國小報《圖片報》報道，這名56歲的男子名為Klaus O，他于5月份被逮捕了。監控視頻顯示，他打開一名同事的飯盒，隨后倒入可疑粉末。

"In the beginning we thought it was a misconceived prank between co-workers, and not a murder attempt," Tilo Blechinger, the manager for the metal fittings manufacturer ARI Armaturen, told the DPA news agency.

金屬配件生產商ARI Armaturen經理Tilo Blechinge向德意志新聞社透露：“剛開始，我們以為這是同事之間的一個惡作劇，而非蓄意謀殺。”

Bielefeld police said the powder contained lead acetate "in amounts that would have been sufficient to cause serious organ damage," and a search of the suspect’s home uncovered further additional dangerous substances.

比勒費爾德警方表示，該粉末含有一定量的醋酸鉛，足夠造成器官嚴重損壞，隨后對該嫌疑人屋子展開的搜索也讓他們發現了更多的危險物質。

The 21 deaths since 2000, which were all employees at the company the man worked for, included a "remarkably high number of heart attacks and cancers," according to police.

據警方透露，該男子上班的公司2000年以來共有21名員工死亡，多數死于心臟病和癌癥。

Three other workers at the company are also believed to have fallen ill from heavy metal poisoning.

據信，該公司另有三名員工也因重金屬中毒生病了。

One employee has been in a coma for two years, according The Times of London.

據倫敦《泰晤士報》報道，一名員工昏迷已有兩年。

A man who worked with the suspect for 30 years told Bild his kidneys failed suddenly three months ago, and he is unable to drink more a few ounces of liquid a day without suffering severe cramps.

一名與該嫌疑人共事30年的男子向《圖片報》透露，他的雙腎三個月前突然衰竭了，他現在一天連幾盎司的酒都喝不了了，每天肌肉抽筋。

“Doctors could not explain why I got so sick,” the man, identified as Udo B, told Bild.

這名名為Udo B的男子向《圖片報》說道：“醫生們無法解釋我生病的原因。”

The 56-year-old man said Klaus O was a close colleague but he didn’t know anything about him.

這名56歲的男子表示，Klaus O是他親密的同事，但是他對他一點都不了解。

“He always stayed by himself, did not speak and had no friends," the man said.

他說道：“他總是一個人待著，不說話，沒朋友。”

A spokeswoman for the Poison Information Center at the University of Bonn told Bild it was a “very unusual case," and that lead poisoning is difficult to detect due to symptoms that might be caused by other conditions.

波恩大學毒藥信息中心的一名女發言人向《圖片報》表示，這起案件不同尋常，鉛中毒難以監測，因為癥狀可能是由其他疾病引起的。

Authorities are considering exhuming the bodies to determine the presence of metal, according to Deutsche Welle.

德國之聲報道，相關部門正在考慮挖出尸體確定是否存在金屬中毒。

源自：福克斯新聞