CHESTERFIELD COUNTY, Va. -- A woman was arrested following a domestic dispute at Chesterfield County apartment complex.
At about 11 a.m. Monday, police responded to a reported domestic dispute involving a suspect in a vehicle.
A child was rinsed off over concern they had been exposed to a poison.
Responding officers located the vehicle and initiated a traffic stop, but the vehicle did not initially stop. Ultimately, the suspect vehicle stopped in the area of Club Terrace Lane and Terrace Arbor Circle.
During the investigation, a vial -- that police said was very old -- rolled out of a vehicle and broke in the parking lot.
A Chesterfield HAZMAT crew was called to the Terraces at Swift Creek apartment complex to investigate the substance because police on scene did not know what the vial contained.
The investigation determined the substance in the vial was not dangerous, however, police found boxes of strychnine in the vehicle. Clove oil was in the vial, police said.
Strychnine is a white, odorless poison often used to kill rats, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Strychnine can also be smoked or snorted as an illegal drug. Fire officials tell CBS 6 the labels on the substance said it was from the 1830's.
As officers struggled with the suspect, the officers and the suspect may have come into contact with the substance.
Out of an abundance of caution HAZMAT decontaminated those who may have come in contact with the substance.
After decontamination, the three police officers and one sheriff’s deputy involved were sent to change their uniforms and the suspect was transported to the jail.
A male child of the suspect was also decontaminated; he was released to a guardian designated by the suspect.
Chesterfield narcotics detectives were called to the complex to continue the investigation.
Information about the woman who was arrested and the circumstances surrounding the initial domestic dispute has not yet been released.
