Rong Yuan, a former employee of Berkeley Engineering and Research, is releasing hidden-camera footage of her ex-coworker David Xu poisoning her water as he petitions an Alameda County judge to dismiss his felony conviction. The move comes as Xu seeks to have the conviction expunged from his record, a request the district attorney's office has formally opposed.
According to prosecutors, Xu, who served as a senior materials engineer at Berkeley Engineering and Research in California, administered cadmium, a toxic heavy metal, to Yuan's food and water for more than a year between 2017 and 2019. His original charges included premeditated attempted murder and two felony counts of poisoning. He eventually accepted a plea deal involving one count of poisoning and one year of probation, pleading no contest. During his 2024 sentencing hearing, the judge extended his probation to two years, describing the deal as "extremely generous" given the circumstances.
Yuan stated that releasing the video is her "last resort" in a legal system she believes has failed her. Under California law, judges are required to grant dismissal requests if defendants meet their probation conditions, regardless of prosecutorial objection. The video Yuan is releasing appears to show Xu pouring a substance into her water bottle.
Yuan joined Berkeley Engineering and Research in January 2017. She recalled a tense first interaction with Xu, who allegedly told her she could not use the firm's material characterization lab. She decided to avoid overlap with him and focus on her own work. Within weeks, she began experiencing symptoms including dry heaving and hair loss.
The situation escalated in July 2017 when Yuan drank from her water bottle and reported feeling like she was dying. By late 2018, after repeated hospital visits, she emailed Xu on November 27, 2018, stating she was vomiting and would not come to the office. Xu responded by suggesting she work from home until she felt better and claimed the office was "moldy." In January 2019, Yuan experienced similar symptoms after drinking from her desk bottle. Her mother tasted the water and detected a sour flavor, which raised suspicions of tampering.
Yuan then ordered a spy camera from Amazon and placed it on her desk on February 11, 2019. The footage captured Xu reaching for the area where her water bottle was located at 11:04 a.m. A subsequent video from March 4, 2019, shows him pouring a substance into the bottle. After reviewing the footage, Yuan described feeling that her blood was frozen and stated she had experienced death closely many times. She turned the video over to the Berkeley Police Department shortly after.
Xu completed his probation in March. Although he is petitioning to expunge the conviction, the record will remain on his file. Fox News Digital reached out to Xu's attorney for comment.