In a plot straight out of a workplace horror movie, a Wisconsin man is facing serious criminal charges after allegedly pouring power steering fluid into his employee’s drink, all because he thought the guy was “trash talking” him.
According to a criminal complaint obtained by Law & Crime, 60-year-old a Wisconsin man named Steven R. Cox, a supervisor at ETE Reman, a car transmission company in Milwaukee, was caught red-handed tampering with one of his worker’s drinks. Police responded to the scene on June 5 after the victim reported feeling sick and suspected someone had spiked his Arizona iced tea with something nasty.
The victim told authorities he had arrived at work that day around 1:45 p.m. and left two drinks—an Arizona Ginseng Tea and a fruit punch in the employee breakroom freezer. Later, when he took a sip of the tea, he noticed the rim was greasy and smelled like chemicals. Concerned (and rightfully so), he showed the drink to coworkers, including his boss, Steven Cox.
Turns out, Cox wasn’t just offering sympathy, he was the one who allegedly poured steering fluid into the drink in the first place.
Wisconsin Boss Spiked Employee’s Drink With Deadly Substance As A ‘Prank’
After the complaint was filed, the company’s HR team reviewed surveillance footage from the breakroom. What they found was shocking, if not wildly unsettling. According to the report, the video showed Cox entering the breakroom with two bottles of Pure Leaf tea. He scoped out the room, clearly making sure no one else was around, before taking the victim’s Arizona iced tea out of the freezer and pouring something into it.
He then casually washed out his own Pure Leaf bottle and tossed it in the trash like nothing happened. But HR wasn’t about to let it go. They retrieved the bottle, and sure enough, it had the same greasy substance and chemical smell as the tampered iced tea.
The victim, who had to seek medical treatment at an urgent care facility, told officers that while he and Cox had experienced conflict in the past, he thought things were water under the bridge. Apparently not. When confronted, Cox denied involvement but claimed the victim was “always glaring at him.”
Later, though, Cox came clean to officers. He admitted to pouring power steering fluid into the drink because he’d “always had an issue” with the employee and had heard rumors that the victim “was always trash talking him.” Cox allegedly brushed off the whole thing as a “prank.”
Trash Talking Leads To Wild Work Encounter
Cox was arrested on a felony charge of placing foreign objects in edibles, a serious offense considering the potential health implications. He was taken to jail and later released on bond. His next court appearance is scheduled for June 28, and court records show he has been assigned a public defender.
Workplace drama is one thing, but this Wisconsin man crossed every imaginable line. Whether Cox thought he was making a statement or just being petty, slipping auto fluid into a drink is dangerous, illegal, and just plain unhinged. Calling it a “prank” doesn’t soften the blow; it just makes the whole thing seem even more bizarre and reckless.
Let’s hope justice is served for the Wisconsin employee. And if you’re reading this at your office, maybe keep an eye on your drinks in the breakroom.
Nina Franklin 
Dylan Cook 
