Missouri woman allegedly spikes family’s tea and lemonade with rat poison and antifreeze, sings about Jesus on the way to jail
A 61-year-old woman from Versailles, MO was arrested recently, accused of spiking her husband and her family’s drinks with rat poison and antifreeze. The woman’s family became ill from the alleged poisonings but survived. Reports say the woman sang songs about Jesus once in custody.
According to the Morgan County Sheriff’s Office, Barbaray Clinkenbeard, was arrested on March 29, 2025, and charged with two counts of first-degree domestic assault and two counts of armed criminal action. She allegedly poisoned her husband and two other family members on two separate occasions by adding rat poison to their lemonade and tea in December 2024 and antifreeze to their tea in January 2025, causing the victim to become very ill each time.
During transport to the Morgan County Jail, Clinkenbeard reportedly sang religious songs about Jesus saving her and alternated between crying and singing upon arrival at the police station. She is currently being held without bond.
Clinkenbeard is accused of poisoning her family over “arguments”
Morgan County prosecutors charged Barbaray Clinkenbeard, 61, with two counts of First Degree Domestic Assault and two counts of Armed Criminal Action.https://t.co/XZrEV0Nl3f
— KRCG 13 (@KRCG13) March 31, 2025
The motive behind these actions appears to be related to arguments between Clinkenbeard and the victim. According to court documents, Clinkenbeard admitted to poisoning the victim’s drinks during disputes. When asked if she knew that the amount of poison she administered could be fatal, she reportedly answered yes.
According to Missouri news outlet KOMU, Clinkenbeard admitted she got the rat poison from a bus and the antifreeze from a truck on her property.
According to Law & Crime, Clinkenbeard could spend up to 30 years in prison if convicted and is expected to appear in court on April 8. Her charges include first-degree domestic assault, mental commitment, and armed criminal action.
Rat poison toxicity varies significantly depending on the specific chemicals used, making it difficult to define a lethal dose. Even small amounts of some rat poisons can cause serious health problems, and larger amounts can be fatal.
Meanwhile, antifreeze is extremely toxic primarily due to its ethylene glycol content. The sweet taste of antifreeze can make it particularly dangerous, and attractive to children and animals, possibly explaining how Clinkenbeard allegedly mixed into tea and lemonade without the drinker noticing.
The Torii Fedrick antifreeze case
A Georgia woman has been convicted of poisoning her husband to death, according to Channel 2 News.
— Robert SFDC (@robert_adero) April 1, 2025
_________________________________________#ToriiFedrick was sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole on Thursday after a jury in Thomas County found her guilty of… pic.twitter.com/qAs3waoaHg
Incredibly, the Clinkenbeard case is not the only antifreeze-related crime in the news recently. On March 27 this year, the Thomas County, GA Sheriff’s Office announced Torii Fedrick was convicted of murdering her husband, Phil Fedrick, in September 2021, with ethylene glycol, a substance found in antifreeze and brake fluid.
In March, Fedrick was sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole. Fedrick’s defense called it a suicide, and Fedrick’s motive for killing her husband has not been disclosed.
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