2001 Anthrax attacks
The 2001 anthrax attacks in the United States, also known as Amerithrax from its FBI case name, occurred over the course of several weeks beginning on September 18, 2001, one week after the September 11 attacks. Letters containing anthrax spores were mailed to several news media offices and two Democratic U.S. Senators, killing five people and infecting 17 others. The ensuing investigation is said by the FBI to have become "one of the largest and most complex in the history of law enforcement." [1]
Media reports focused on other possible suspects for years, but FBI files show that the investigation began to focus on Bruce Edwards Ivins as early as April 4, 2005, when Dr. Ivins told the FBI he would not talk any further without his lawyer present. On April 11, 2007, Dr. Ivins was put under periodic surveillance because "Bruce Edwards Ivins is an extremely sensitive suspect in the 2001 anthrax attacks".[2] Ivins was a scientist who worked at the government's biodefense laboratory at Fort Detrick in Frederick, Maryland. In June 2008, Ivins was told of the impending prosecution, and on July 27, 2008 it is claimed he committed suicide using an overdose of acetaminophen.[3]
On August 6, 2008, federal prosecutors declared Ivins to be the sole culprit of the crime.[4] Two days later, Sen. Charles Grassley and Rep. Rush Holt called for hearings into the DOJ and FBI's handling of the investigation. [5] [6] On February 19, 2010, the FBI formally closed its investigation. [7]
A review of the science used in the investigation is under way at the National Academy of Sciences. [8] Some information about the case related to Ivins' mental problems is still "under seal." [9] Lawsuits filed by the widow of victim Bob Stevens have not yet been settled. [10]
External Sites
References
- ↑ FBI web site Anthrax case links
- ↑ FBI file #847444, page 67
- ↑ Ivins case reignites debate on anthrax LA Times 3 August 2008
- ↑ U.S. officials declare researcher is anthrax killer CNN 6 August 2008
- ↑ Anthrax investigation should be investigated, congressmen say Associated Press 8 August 2008
- ↑ ISBN 978-1-60239-715-6 The Anthrax Letters: A Bioterrorism Expert Investigates the Attacks That Shocked America-Case Closed?
- ↑ F.B.I., Laying Out Evidence, Closes Anthrax Letters Case New York Times 19 February 2010
- ↑ Science review underway
- ↑ FBI Summary Report Footnote pp. 8
- ↑ Law Suits remain unsettled
