Charges dismissed against St. Paul man accused of trying to kill ex-wife with poison

Nick Ferraro, Pioneer Press
·3 min read
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Charges have been dismissed against a St. Paul man who was accused of trying to kill his ex-wife by pouring liquid nicotine on her during a custody visit with their two children at a Roseville park.

Thorbjorn Vadnis Koyen MacBain, 42, had faced second-degree attempted murder and second-degree assault charges in connection with the incident at Central Park in September 2022.

MacBain had pleaded not guilty to the charges, and a jury trial began in Ramsey County District Court this past November. According to court filings, on the third day, during cross-examination of MacBain’s ex-wife by his defense attorney, it came out that text messages and emails between the woman and the lead investigator on the case had not been disclosed to neither the defense nor the prosecution prior to the trial.

MacBain’s attorney Joe Tamburino made a motion for a mistrial, which Judge Sara Grewing declared the next day.

On Wednesday, instead of proceeding with a retrial, the Ramsey County attorney’s office decided to dismiss the charges.

Dennis Gerhardstein, attorney’s office spokesman, said Friday that they had moved forward preparing for a retrial. However, as the investigation continued, he said in a statement, “we engaged the victim in conversation to consider her wishes. We then made the difficult decision to dismiss the case as it is the right thing to do, rather than subject the victim and her children to a challenging and difficult retrial.”

Tamburino said Friday he and his defense team “always believed in (MacBain’s) innocence. We never thought this was any type of a poison case, or anything like that. So we’re very happy that we were able to get his case dismissed.”

MacBain’s ex-wife told authorities that when MacBain returned from a park bathroom he was holding a bottle and poured a liquid on her that had a different smell and consistency than water, the criminal complaint said. She said she began to feel sick and if she was going to lose consciousness and was not able to stand up.

She was transported to Regions Hospital, and her condition quickly deteriorated, the complaint said. A doctor told authorities that she nearly died, and that all of her symptoms were consistent with having been poisoned with an organophosphate, which include pesticides and nerve agents that can be inhaled and absorbed through the skin.

MacBain told police that he only sprayed his ex-wife with a squirt gun that he and the kids had been playing with, according to the complaint.

A sample of MacBain’s ex-wife’s urine was submitted to the Minnesota Department of Health and lab results did not detect the presence of an organophosphate, according to an amended complaint filed nine months after the original one. However, it did show an “extremely high amount” of cotinine, a metabolite of nicotine. Law enforcement confirmed that MacBain’s ex-wife had never used tobacco products, the complaint said.

The FBI’s lab division tested her clothing and found nicotine and DMSO, a clear odorless liquid substance, on her sweatshirt, shirt and shoes.

“Law enforcement found that DMSO is a widely available substance and among its properties enhances the absorption of other substances through the skin,” the complaint said.

The FBI lab report indicated that pure nicotine is considered a poison and can lead to nicotinism, a condition caused by excessive tobacco use and can suppress the central and autonomic nervous systems, the complaint said. Symptoms can include nausea, dizziness, loss of coordination and respiratory paralysis, which may lead to death.

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