An envelope addressed to President Donald Trump at the White House containing the poison Ricin was intercepted by federal investigators this week. The FBI, Secret Service and U.S. Postal Service inspectors are investigating to find out where it came from and what was their motive.
It’s not the first time this has happened, and it’s almost always motivated by a political message. (In one notable case someone was trying to frame someone for a crime, not send a message.)
Here’s a report from (blech) CNN, but when there’s one from Fox News or something, I’ll replace it.
Package containing deadly ricin addressed to Trump intercepted: CNN https://t.co/PYsrjvTlNr — @dcexaminer pic.twitter.com/wfPrWhohI2
— Daniel Chaitin (@danielchaitin7) September 19, 2020
Bad stuff.
Ricin, a poison drawn from the husks of castor beans, has surfaced in other plots targeting Trump and other officials.
In 2018, a federal grand jury returned a seven-count indictment against a Utah man, alleging that he threatened Trump and other administration officials in letters, some of which contained the natural ingredients used to make ricin.
In that case, a series of suspicious letter were addressed to Trump, then-Defense Secretary James Mattis, FBI Director Christopher Wray, CIA Director Gina Haspel and others.
Some reports indicate the package may have been mailed from Canada, though that doesn’t tell you much about the motive or even if it was an American who sent it.
This is a developing story and may be updated.