Anjette Donovan Lyles

Serial Killer

Anjette Donovan Lyles: The Macon Arsenic Poisoner

Restaurant Owner and Serial Poisoner

Anjette Donovan Lyles was an American restaurateur and serial poisoner whose crimes shocked Macon, Georgia, during the 1950s. Behind the public image of a friendly and successful restaurant owner, investigators concluded that she had methodically poisoned four members of her own family with arsenic. The deaths occurred between January 1952 and April 1958 and included her first husband, her second husband, her mother-in-law, and her nine-year-old daughter. Lyles administered arsenic gradually, causing illnesses that could initially resemble serious natural diseases. Her victims suffered prolonged periods of weakness, swelling, vomiting, bleeding, convulsions, and other unexplained symptoms before dying. Because the poison was apparently delivered in repeated small amounts, the deaths did not immediately appear connected. Each loss also placed Lyles in a position to receive insurance payments, inherit property, control an estate, or otherwise benefit financially.

Marriage to Ben F. Lyles Jr.

Anjette Donovan married Ben F. Lyles Jr. in 1947. Ben owned Lyles Restaurant in downtown Macon, a business that had been established by his family. The couple had two daughters, Marcia Elaine Lyles, born in 1948, and Carla Lyles, born in 1951. Anjette worked in the restaurant and became known for her outgoing personality and ability to attract and entertain customers. Ben's health deteriorated during 1951. He reportedly experienced alarming symptoms that included swelling, bleeding from the nose and mouth, delirium, rigid limbs, and convulsions. He eventually fell into a coma and died in Macon on January 25, 1952. His death was originally attributed to encephalitis, and no murder investigation was opened at the time. Years later, Ben's body was exhumed as investigators reconsidered the growing number of suspicious deaths surrounding Anjette. Laboratory testing reportedly found arsenic in his remains. Prosecutors later presented his death as the beginning of a calculated series of poisonings committed for financial and personal advantage. ...

Confirmed Victims: (4)

Ben F. Lyles Jr. , Date of Death: January 25, 1952

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