If you’ve ever suspected your coworker was trying to sabotage you, this story won’t help.
A man in Shanghai was just sentenced to over three years in prison for drugging his colleague with something he thought would make him spill company secrets. A “truth serum”. He wanted access to confidential work plans. So he used sedatives. And now he’s going to jail for it.
According to the South China Morning Post, the man, surnamed Li, bought the not-sketchy-at-all serum from a vendor while on a business trip. All he had to do? Just a few drops and your subject spills their deepest secrets. Instead of questioning the ethics—or the actual chemistry—Li returned to the office with a plan.
Man Jailed for Slipping His Coworker ‘Truth Serum’
He invited his colleague, Wang, out to dinner. During three separate meals, Li slipped the “truth serum” into Wang’s drinks—beer, wine, even chrysanthemum tea. Wang became dizzy, nauseated, and, at one point, unconscious. After the third incident, he finally caught the pattern: he only felt sick after seeing Li.
Tests revealed clonazepam and xylazine in his system, both strong central nervous system depressants. Clonazepam is a regulated psychotropic. Xylazine is typically used to tranquilize animals. Their combined effects don’t encourage honesty; they suppress motor function.
Police raided Li’s home and found the bottle, which tested positive for both substances. Confronted with the evidence, he confessed to all three incidents. Whatever corporate espionage he was attempting, it failed—Wang never spilled one bean. Not that we know what those plans were.
Still, the court found the effort enough to charge him with inducing drug use through deception and endangering public safety, earning him three months in the clink. He was also fined 10,000 yuan (about $1,400).
The case sparked a wave of online speculation about what, exactly, was worth this level of performance. “Are we talking about a deal worth millions?” one user wrote. Another called it “absurd,” adding, “If this was for a job that pays a few thousand yuan a month, the man needs more than prison.”
Wang’s current condition hasn’t been made public, but the incident has prompted renewed warnings from Chinese authorities about hidden sedatives disguised as drinks, candy, and even baked goods.
Office ambition is one thing. Drugging your coworker to steal their ideas is several crimes.
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