Paramedic accused of poisoning both wife and daughter with eye drops

A North Carolina man, previously accused of fatally poisoning his wife with eye drops, now faces allegations of attempting to poison his 11-year-old daughter using the same substance, court documents reveal. According to the Independent, inmate records show Joshua Lee Hunsucker, 39, was booked into Gaston County Jail.

Hunsucker was first accused of murdering his wife, Stacy Robinson Hunsucker, in September 2018. Prosecutors claim he poisoned her with eye drops containing tetrahydrozoline, a substance commonly present in eye drops and nasal sprays. As a paramedic, Hunsucker had easy access to such substances.

Medical tests conducted on Hunsucker's 11-year-old daughter in February 2023 revealed the presence of the same active ingredient in her system. Court documents state that Hunsucker is accused of putting eye drops into his daughter's drink. The tests also detected a depression drug "not approved for children" in her system.

Prosecutors claim Hunsucker poisoned his child in an attempt to implicate his former in-laws, who are witnesses in his wife's murder case. "The poisoning of [Hunsucker's daughter] was once again done with an attempt [to] implicate Mr and Mrs Robinson in the death of his wife and remove the Robinsons from the lives of his daughters," the court filing stated.

According to the filing, Hunsucker is also accused of staging his own kidnapping and assault in February 2023. The same drug found in his daughter's system was discovered in Hunsucker's truck "during the false kidnapping report."

Prosecutors expressed concerns for the safety of Hunsucker's two daughters and his in-laws. The court has granted the in-laws more unsupervised visitation with the girls, a move that prosecutors warn may "further inflame the defendant's feelings towards them."

The state alleges that Hunsucker's behavior toward his in-laws has become "increasingly aggressive" and that he has engaged in a "pattern of harassment" against them. Hunsucker faces four counts of intimidation and four counts of obstruction of justice, court documents show.

The Gaston Gazette stated that before his wife's death, Hunsucker reportedly informed two ex-colleagues that he would use eye drops if he were ever to murder someone. Just two days after his wife died, Hunsucker moved to collect $250,000 in life insurance payments.

Initially thought to be a heart attack due to her history of heart problems, Stacy Hunsucker's death was later revealed through an autopsy to involve "very high levels" of tetrahydrozoline. Joshua Hunsucker was subsequently charged with insurance fraud in 2018.

Arrested in December 2019, Hunsucker was released after securing a $1.5 million bond. His release conditions included wearing an ankle monitor and maintaining a curfew. Now, prosecutors are seeking to revoke his bond, arguing that his "dangerous actions will continue to escalate." They have requested the court to place Hunsucker in custody "on a hold."

The trial for the murder case against Hunsucker is still pending and has not started yet. He has denied the charges in court. When asked for a comment, Hunsucker's lawyer declined, mentioning the existence of a gag order.