A Colorado dentist has been charged with killing his wife, the mother of his six children, by spiking her protein shakes with arsenic and cyanide so he could start a new life with his lover, according to court documents. James Toliver Craig, 45, was arrested on Sunday on one count of first‑degree murder for allegedly fatally poisoning his wife, Angela Craig. She was pronounced brain‑dead on March 18 and later taken off life support. While his 43‑year‑old spouse lay dying in the hospital, Craig allegedly flew his orthodontist lover from Austin to Denver; the two had exchanged “sexually explicit emails,” the arrest affidavit states.
The charging document describes a troubled marriage, financial difficulties, and Craig’s alleged sinister plot to murder his wife. “In totality, this investigation has proven that James has gone to great lengths to try and end his wife’s life,” Aurora Police Detective Bobbi Olson wrote. On February 27, Craig created a secret email account, jimandwaffles.com, which he used only on a computer in his now‑shuttered Summerbrook Dental Office. Investigators say he used the account to research “undetectable poisons.” His Google history revealed searches such as “how many grams of pure arsenic will kill a human?” and “Is arsenic detectable in autopsy?” He later purchased crystalline metalloid arsenic from Amazon, which was delivered on March 4 to the family’s $1.3 million home while his wife returned from a trip to Utah the next day.
On March 6, the couple worked out together, and Craig made his wife a “pre‑workout shake” with extra protein because she was feeling sluggish, the affidavit alleges. Hours later she complained of faintness and dizziness and was admitted to the hospital, though she was discharged the same day. “I feel drugged,” Angela texted her husband. Her sister told police that Craig had drugged his wife about five years earlier when he had planned to commit suicide and didn’t want her to stop him. In a text, Craig replied, “Given our history, I know that must be a trigger… Just for the record, I didn’t drug you. I am super worried though. You looked pale before I left. Like your lips even.”
That night Craig allegedly ordered Oleandrin, another poison, which was intercepted before delivery. He then ordered more poison, including a rush delivery of potassium cyanide that arrived at his dental office on March 13. Meanwhile, his wife was readmitted to the hospital on March 9 and remained there for five days, coinciding with a two‑day visit from his paramour. On March 15, one day after Angela was discharged, she was readmitted and began suffering a severe seizure, after which she was rushed to the intensive care unit and pronounced brain‑dead. Craig’s mistress returned to Denver the next day.
Investigators learned from the mistress’s sister, Toni Kofoed, that the marriage had always been “tumultuous,” that Craig had “multiple affairs with several women,” and that he had been “addicted to pornography since he was a teenager.” Over the past 16 years, Angela had told her sister she planned to leave him, but he always convinced her to stay. The couple was also broke and on the verge of a second bankruptcy; Angela had complained that Craig had recently gambled away over $2,000 on a trip to Las Vegas.
The police investigation began after Craig’s business partner, Ryan Redfearn, reported his suspicion that the dentist had poisoned his wife. Redfearn confronted Craig about the cyanide delivered to the dental office, and Craig allegedly claimed his wife had asked him to order it so she could commit suicide. “At that point, Ryan told James to stop talking and get a lawyer,” the affidavit says.
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