'Homicide remains a possibility' in farmer's mysterious poisoning death

Douglas Thrift died in December, 2018, an autopsy later revealing he had a fatal concentration of the highly-toxic strychnine in his system. An inquest beginning Monday will examine the source of strychnine and how it was ingested.

FOUR years after the mysterious poisoning death of much loved Upper Hunter farmer and sporting legend Douglas Thrift, police searching a shed on his property picked up a small glass bottle lying face down on a shelf.

Wiping away the dust from the frayed and faded label, officers saw the words "strychnine alkaloid".