Multiple Suspicious Letters Containing Ricin Sent To U.S. Lawmakers

Following yesterday’s report that a ricin poison-tainted letter had been sent to Sen. Roger Wicker (R-MS), today the Secret Service announced that another similar letter had been intercepted on its way to President Obama. Since then, several other suspicious letters have been reportedly caught by congressional staff before reaching their intended targets: lawmakers on both sides of the aisle.

Democratic Senator Carl Levin‘s Michigan office was reportedly evacuated after a staffer flagged a letter that fit the description of the ones sent to Wicker and Obama. Levin was in Washington, D.C. at the time. The letter was not opened and has not yet been tested for ricin poison.

Authorities are also investigating two letters sent to the Arizona office of Republican Senator Jeff Flake. Emergency personnel wearing hazmat suits retrieved the suspicious items, while people were evacuated in parts of the building.

In addition, the Hart Senate Office Building was shut down Wednesday morning after a suspicious package was found on the atrium level. That situation was reportedly cleared and the building reopened shortly after.

So far, the ricin poison has been confirmed only in the letters sent to Sen. Wicker and President Obama. Lawmakers are clearly on high alert as more of these suspicious letters are intercepted. Ricin, a poison naturally found in castor beans, has no known antidote and has varying effects from illness to death depending on exposure.

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