Ricin Letter
Photographs | Reward
Flyer | January 8, 2004
Press Release
Columbia, South
Carolina -- Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), United States
Postal Inspection Service, and the United States
Department of Transportation (DOT), Office of Inspector General continue
to offer a reward of up to $100,000 for information leading to the
arrest and conviction of the individual(s) responsible for introducing
threatening letters seeking the repeal of recently enacted federal
regulations concerning truck drivers' "hours of service".
On January 4, 2004, new federal regulations went into effect mandating
more rest and orienting drivers toward a 24 hour work/rest cycle.
On October 15,
2003, a threatening letter was discovered at a United States Postal
facility
in Greenville, South Carolina. The author(s)
of this typewritten letter claimed that he or she was a fleet owner
of a tanker company and demanded that the present laws regarding truck
driver hours of service regulations remain unchanged. A type written
message on the exterior of the envelope indicated "caution RICIN
POISON Enclosed in sealed container Do not open without proper protection".
Inside the envelope was a small, metal vial which contained ricin,
a white, granular, potentially deadly poison. The author(s) of this
letter claimed to have the ability to make large quantities of ricin
and to use this poison if the new hours of service regulations were
not repealed by January 4, 2004. The letter was signed "Fallen
Angel".
A second letter,
addressed to the White House and processed through a postal facility
in Chattanooga,
Tennessee on October 17, 2003, contained
similar threatening language and was directed at the United States
Department of Transportation. This second letter threatened to turn "D.C.
into a ghost town" if these new "hours of service" regulations
went into effect and was signed "Fallen Angel". The author(s)
of this letter claimed that the powder on the letter was ricin. The
substance contained in the letter has been identified as containing
ricin.
Attached to this
release is a photograph of the exterior of the envelope processed
by the postal facility in Chattanooga, TN on October 17,
2003, as well as, a photograph of the threat letter contained in that
envelope. Additionally, attached is a copy of the reward flyer released
on January 7, 2004.
Anyone with information
concerning the identity of the individual(s) responsible for authoring
these threatening letters is requested to
contact the FBI toll free at 1-866-839-6241.
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