Mercury in distilled products from a distillation column is removed and extracted as soluble mercury compounds with the injection of a complexing agent into the overhead sections of the column. Examples of complexing agents include polysulfides such as sodium polysulfide or ammonium polysulfide. In one embodiment, the complexing agent is injected into the inlet pipe just before the overhead condenser, converting the volatile elemental mercury into a species that is soluble in the sour water stream that collected in the overhead sections.