World of the Bizarre

Man faces prison after trying to collect all the elements of the periodic table

By T.K. Randall
April 1, 2025 ·  18 comments

Plutonium - not your typical collectible. Image Credit: Department of Energy When it comes to collecting things as a hobby, most people will typically opt for postage stamps, coins, trading cards or other similar things.

None of these was ever going to be sufficient for 24-year-old Australian Emmanuel Lidden, however, who decided instead that he was going to collect a sample of every single element on the periodic table - even the dangerous ones.

Perhaps inevitably, he ended up being arrested by police during a major raid on his house after he attempted to ship radioactive plutonium into the country to add to his collection.

The ensuing court case has since made headline news, with Lidden's lawyer, John Sutton, arguing that the young man was simply a "science nerd" who had not intended to cause any harm.He hadn't even tried to hide his name on the parcel when he ordered the plutonium from overseas.

"He did not import or possess these items with any sinister intent... these were offenses committed out of pure naivety," said Sutton.

"It was a manifestation of self-soothing retreating into collection, it could have been anything but in this case he latched on to the collection of the periodic table."

"The level of the response was a massive overreaction given what the investigative authority already knew. Rather than give him an opportunity to return the items, the kitchen sink was thrown at him, along with the utensils inside."

Lidden, who will be sentenced later this month, now faces up to 10 years in prison.

Source: Oddity Central | Comments (18)

Tags: Prison