A Colorado dentist was charged with murder on Sunday after detectives discovered his wife was fatally poisoned, police said.
James Toliver Craig, 45, of Aurora, drove his wife to the hospital on Wednesday, reporting that she had headaches and dizziness.
“Shortly after arriving at the hospital, the wife’s condition deteriorated rapidly, and she was placed on a ventilator in an intensive care unit. She was declared medically brain dead a short time later,” Aurora police said.
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Detectives from the Major Crimes Homicide Unit detectives launched an intensive investigation that revealed 43-year-old Angela Craig, a mother of six, was poisoned.
“A warrant for first-degree murder was obtained early Sunday morning shortly after doctors made the decision to take the victim off life support,” police said.
“It was quickly discovered this was in fact a heinous, complex and calculated murder,” Division Chief Mark Hildebrand said.
A person close to Angela Craig’s family told The Daily Beast she was “a phenomenal woman, outgoing, and the best mother you could imagine. She was very supportive of her husband, even working in his practice during financial difficulties.”
Married to James Craig for two decades, she was mother to six children, five girls and a boy, ages 8 to 20.
She began experiencing symptoms a couple of weeks ago and told family members about headaches and light-headedness.
She had been examined at the hospital at least twice before Wednesday morning, but her relatives thought it might be a sinus infection because she was susceptible to them.
“One of her brothers who lives in Salt Lake went out to be with her,” the person close to the family said.
At that point, there was no reason to suspect foul play, but after Angela was admitted to the hospital again on Wednesday, her husband made himself scarce.
“He has not been around the family much in the last few days,” the source said. “That led to some suspicion.”
In addition, they said, a “third party” went to police with some type of evidence that led police to suspect James Craig was involved.
“There’s a lot of grief—and a lot of anger,” they said.
Police did not say what poison was used or what the motive might be.
In a 2021 press release, James Craig said he was “happily married” to Angela.
“They have six children, and they all enjoy the outdoors, especially camping, snowboarding, fishing, hiking, rock climbing, and mountain biking,” the press release added. “They also enjoy visiting theme parks and are often traveling to Disney, Universal, and Sea World.”
It also noted that the suspect volunteered with WE CAN HELP, an anti-bullying program sponsored by the Denver Police Department.
Court records show that Craig and his practice, Summerbrook Dental, filed for bankruptcy protection in 2021.
