Colorado dentist James Toliver Craig is charged with poisoning his wife to death

A Colorado dentist was charged with murder Sunday after detectives found his wife had been fatally poisoned, police said.

James Toliver Craig, 45, of Aurora, drove his wife to the hospital on Wednesday and reported she had a headache and dizziness.

“Shortly after arriving at the hospital, the woman’s condition deteriorated rapidly and she was placed on a ventilator in an intensive care unit. She was pronounced brain dead a short time later,” Aurora Police said.

Detectives from the Major Crimes Homicide Unit launched an intensive investigation which found that 43-year-old Angela Craig, a mother of six, was poisoned.

“A warrant for first-degree murder was obtained early Sunday morning, shortly after doctors decided to take the victim off life support,” police said.

“It was quickly discovered that what was actually involved was a heinous, complex and calculated murder,” said department head Mark Hildebrand.

A person close to Angela Craig’s family told The Daily Beast that she is “a phenomenal woman, outgoing and the best mother you could ask for. She was very supportive of her husband and even worked in his practice when he was in financial difficulty.”

Married to James Craig for two decades, she is a mother of six children, five girls and one boy, ranging in age from 8 to 20.

She started showing symptoms a few weeks ago and told family members about headaches and lightheadedness.

She had been checked at least twice in hospital before Wednesday morning, but her relatives thought it could be a sinus infection because she was prone to it.

“One of her brothers who lives in Salt Lake City went out to be with her,” said the person close to the family.

At the time, there was no reason to suspect third-party fault, but after Angela was hospitalized again on Wednesday, her husband made few appearances.

“He hasn’t been around the family much in the past few days,” the source said. “That raised some suspicion.”

In addition, a “third party” went to police with some type of evidence leading police to suspect James Craig was involved.

“There’s a lot of sadness — and a lot of anger,” they said.

Police did not say what poison was used or what the motive might be.

In a 2021 press release, James Craig said he was “happily married” to Angela.

“They have six children and all enjoy the outdoors, particularly camping, snowboarding, fishing, hiking, rock climbing and mountain biking,” the press release added. “They also enjoy visiting theme parks and often travel to Disney, Universal and Sea World.”

It also noted that the suspect volunteered with WE CAN HELP, an anti-bullying program sponsored by the Denver Police Department.

Court filings show Craig and his Summerbrook Dental practice filed for bankruptcy protection in 2021.