We have designed a new family of radioligands, 3-(amino- and hydroxymethyl)-4-(5-iodopyridin-2-ylthio)indoles, combining characteristically distinct moieties proven to impart successful binding ability in a variety of structurally diverse selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors recently published. Described in this article are the syntheses of 3-substituted 4-(5-iodopyridin-2-ylthio)-indoles, featuring successful adaptation of the modified Leimgruber-Batcho indole synthesis onto the key intermediate 1-(5-iodopyridin-2-ylthio)-2-methyl-3-nitrobenzene (6) prepared from the nucleophilic aromatic substitution of chloropyridine 7 with thiophenol 8.