US woman releases spycam video of former Berkeley co-worker poisoning her water with cadmium

A California woman has released spycam video evidence of her co-worker engineer poisoning her water and food at her workplace.

David Xu was arrested in March 2019 for spiking his colleague Rong Yuan’s food and water with cadmium, a toxic heavy metal.

The video comes as the accused is set to appear in court on Monday, where he will plead with an Almeda County judge to dismiss his felony conviction. Xu was set to face life in prison but took a plea deal that got him probation.

The video, which was shared with ABC7 Eyewitness News on Saturday, shows the man tampering with her water bottle. The incident took place over the course of 18 months between 2017 and 2019.

The poisoning nearly killed the victim, who suffered from debilitating symptoms. Her parents had also been affected after they consumed the poisoned water at one point.

Yuan told her colleagues that she suffered from severe vomiting on November 27, 2018.

Xu replied, “You should work from home until you feel better. No reason to rush in,” he wrote, adding, “I think BEAR is mouldy.”

In 2019, Yuan set up a hidden camera at her desk, catching Xu in the act; the video led to his arrest on charges of attempted murder and poisoning.

Xu, however, was released on $2 million bail; he then received a modification to his home confinement, and his travel restrictions were eventually lifted.

In 2023, his attempted murder charges were dropped under a plea bargain offered by Pamela Price, the former Alameda County District Attorney,

Xu eventually served only a single day of credited jail time after he also pleaded no contest to a single felony count of poisoning and received two years of probation.

Yuan had sought $500,000 in restitution, but Xu was ordered to pay only $7,058.

Xu is now asking the court to formally dismiss the felony conviction under California’s expungement statute, which grants dismissal to defendants who fulfil every term of their probation.