Man dies after swallowing cyanide during arrest in Macedon Ranges

A man has died after swallowing cyanide during an arrest in the Macedon Ranges, and five police officers potentially exposed to the substance were taken to hospital.

Victoria Police said officers visited a house in the town of Kyneton, about 86 kilometres north-west of Melbourne, about 2pm on Tuesday as part of an investigation.

The crime scene in Kyneton on Wednesday.Credit: Nine News

A 27-year-old man was arrested before he then “appeared unwell and became unresponsive”, police said.

“Police immediately called for medical assistance and performed CPR on the man, however, he was unable to be revived,” police said in a statement on Wednesday.

“At this early stage, it appears the man may have ingested some sort of substance. As a result, five police officers who attended the scene were taken to hospital as a precaution.”

On Thursday, three police sources with knowledge of the incident, but not authorised to speak publicly, confirmed to The Age that the substance the man swallowed was sodium cyanide.

Historically, different forms of cyanide have been used as a lethal poison in several high-profile murders, such as the Jonestown massacre.

But sodium cyanide has industrial uses too, most notably in Australia’s gold mining industry.

In 2010, an Australian government chemical assessment said sodium cyanide was also used in metal cleaning, research, and pest control. However, animal extermination use has since been widely outlawed and sodium cyanide is not registered by the Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority (APVMA) for any agricultural or veterinary purpose.

On Thursday morning, The Age asked Victoria Police what the Kyneton man was being arrested for and how homicide squad detectives suspected he consumed and obtained the cyanide.

A police spokeswoman declined to comment, pointing to ongoing forensic analysis to confirm the substance consumed.

Victoria Police’s professional standards command, the internal unit responsible for investigating police conduct, is investigating the man’s death alongside the homicide squad, per standard practice when a person dies in police custody.

Crisis support is available from Lifeline on 13 11 14 and Beyond Blue on 1300 22 4636.

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