A cult in Oregon tried to sway a local election with a bioterror attack giving hundreds of locals food poisoning

In the 1980s, a commune was set up in an isolated region of Oregon. Followers of the spiritual leader Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh moved from India to a 64,000-acre plot of farm land and soon developed their own community, much to the vexation of the locals. Over time, tensions arose between the two groups, leading to an incident which has since been dubbed the Rajneeshee bioterror attack.

The community, named Rajneeshpuram, had a population of roughly 2,500, however, the population would often swell to around 15,000 during festivals. On the land there was a hospital, water and sewage service, a police force, and even a shopping mall. However, local Oregonians took issue with how land on the former ranch was being used.

Tensions rise

Paranoia within the commune grew as both sides became increasingly antagonistic towards each other. The cult grew, taking over more land and successfully taking over the nearby town of Antelope, renaming it Rajneesh. They also drove out older residents with higher taxes and intimidation. 

The Rajneeshee cult continued to expand, but the Oregon Supreme Court put a dent in their plans by canceling the incorporation of Rajneesheepuram as an official city in Oregon. The cult decided that the best solution was to continue their expansion, but this time they would be a lot more aggressive.

After taking control of Antelope, the Rajneeshees realized they could take control of the entirety of Wasco County if they were able to win two of the three judgeship positions on the three-member governing board. Of course, the Rajneeshees would be hugely outnumbered by the locals, so a plan was hatched to rig the election.

The Rajneeshee bioterror attack

In 1984, the plan was hatched to make voters too ill to be able to head out to their nearest polling station. The Rajneesh Medical Corporation within the commune turned its resources into developing a strain of Salmonella. 

They tested it by giving contaminated water to Oregon officials who visited the ranch, with one county judge becoming so sick he was hospitalized and almost died. Salmonella was also spread on doorknobs, urinals in government buildings, and even sprinkled over food in salad bars.

In September 1984, several teams were assembled to infiltrate restaurants across the county in an effort to infect as many people as possible. The first cases of food poisoning were recorded on September 9, but the link between the Rajneeshee cult and the sickness wasn’t discovered until much later.

All in all, 751 people were infected but there were no fatalities. It wasn’t until Feb. 1985 that the cult was linked to the outbreak. In the end, the Rajneeshees were not successful in winning the election, and the cult ultimately collapsed within a year of the incident.