Arrest made in poison ricin letter sent to Obama

The FBI has arrested a suspect in the case of ricin-laced toxic letters sent to US President Barack Obama and a senator, broadcast media reported on Wednesday. The individual had been arrested in Tupelo, Mississippi, NBC and CNN news reported, citing federal law officials as their source. Tupelo is the hometown of Senator Roger Wicker, to whom one of the letters was addressed.

Initial tests on the letters showed evidence of the deadly poison ricin, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) said earlier Wednesday.

The discoveries were made in special postal screening facilities in suburban Washington, set up after an anthrax attack via mail in 2001, right after the September 11 terrorist attacks on the US.

Congressman Michael McCaul, chairman of the House of Representatives committee on homeland security, said there was no connection between this week’s ricin attack and Monday’s twin bombings at the Boston Marathon.

He called the letter attack a “very dangerous situation.” CNN said the suspect who was arrested had been under observation for some time because of aggressive letters he had sent to Wicker.

The message in the letters reads: “To see a wrong and not expose it, is to become a silent partner to its continuance,” according to law enforcement officials in broadcast remarks. The letters are signed: “I am KC and I approve this message,” mimicking the way politicians sign off on their television and radio ads.

The discovery prompted the lockdown of portions of the Russell and Hart buildings, where many members of the US Senate have their offices, a spokesman for the Capitol Police said. Suspicious letters were also found on Wednesday in two buildings near the US Capitol, prompting law enforcement officials to partially evacuate the buildings.

Ricin is a naturally occurring, highly toxic protein found in the castor oil plant. It causes death when inhaled or ingested.

The FBI said the two letters were related. They were both sent from Memphis, Tennessee, on the same date, April 8, news reports quoted the FBI as saying.



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