Experts doubt anthrax attack was work of lone, rogue scientist

The Commercial Appeal & Washington Post ^ | 10/28/02 | Guy Gugliotta & Gary Matsumoto

[GailA]

Experts doubt anthrax attack was work of lone, rogue scientist

By Guy Gugliotta and Gary Matsumoto The Washington Post October 28, 2002

A significant number of scientists and biological warfare experts are expressing skepticism about the FBI's view that a single disgruntled American scientist prepared the spores and mailed the deadly anthrax letters that killed five people last year.

They say that making a weaponized aerosol of such sophistication and virulence would require scientific knowledge, technical competence, access to expensive equipment and safety know-how that are probably beyond the capabilities of a lone individual.

As a result, a consensus has emerged in recent months among experts familiar with the technology needed to turn anthrax spores into the deadly aerosol that was sent to Sens. Tom Daschle (D-S.D.) and Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) that some of the fundamental assumptions driving the FBI's investigation might be flawed.

"In my opinion, there are maybe four or five people in the whole country who might be able to make this stuff, and I'm one of them," said Richard Spertzel, chief biological inspector for the UN Special Commission between 1994 and 1998. "And even with a good lab and staff to help run it, it might take me a year to come up with a product as good."

Instead, suggested Spertzel and more than a dozen experts interviewed by The Washington Post in recent weeks, investigators might want to re-examine the possibility the anthrax attacks were sponsored by antoher country, or try to determine whether weaponized spores might have been stolen from some secret biodefense program or given to the attacker by an accomplice.

SEE LINK FOR REST OF ARTICLE anthrax

[GailA]

I wasn't sure if the ban on posting FULL Washcompost articles applied when the article was taken from a secondary newspaper. So to be on the safe side I just posted the partial article.

[copycat]

I wonder if the FBI profile of the Anthrax killer is as accurate as their sniper profile?

I have read that th Hamilton NJ post office, where the postal workers were killed by anthrax, is only seven miles from the Sure Shot Used Car lot, where Muhammad and Osbourne bought the blue 1990 Chevy Caprice.

I'm curious about Osbourne as being involved somehow in the Anthrax mailings.

[twntaipan]

The FBI became PC under the evil Bill Clinton. They remain so. They cannot or will not admit this had to have been an Iraqi sponsored attack.

[The Raven]

The PC police were wrong about the sniper....they can be wrong here.

What on earth is wrong with investigating all paths? Why do they form a theory first?

[Prodigal Son]

Scientists suggested the loner theory appeared flawed even in the opening days of the investigation. The profile was issued three weeks after U.S. Army scientists examined the Daschle spores and found them to be 1.5 to 3 microns in size and processed to a grade of 1 trillion spores per gram - 50 times finer than anything produced by the now-defunct U.S. bioweapons program and 10 times finer than the finest known grade of Soviet anthrax. A micron is a millionth of a meter.

It is food for thought.

[San Jacinto]

I wonder if the FBI profile of the Anthrax killer is as accurate as their sniper profile?

Bingo! If they follow the trail from Mohammed Atta and the 9/11 killers it will lead to the anthrax killer and to Iraq.

[eno_]

You could re-headline this: "Anthrax Experts See Sniper 'Experts' Were Fools"

[Lockbox]

"The White Guy did it............look for a white guy, forget all other facts or leads." BOLO for the white guy.

[aruanan]

Experts doubt anthrax attack was work of lone, rogue scientist

You mean it--like the beltway sniper--may turn out not to be a lone white guy?

[Endeavor]

Some of us have been saying this for a long time.

[EnquiringMind]

These so-called experts should start using a little common sense and gut instinct - something we FReepers have been trusting from the beginning.

[browardchad]

You mean it--like the beltway sniper--may turn out not to be a lone white guy?

You forgot "angry" -- a lone, angry, white guy. For the FBI, anger explains everything -- if we could just mandate anger-management classes for the masses, we wouldn't have all this messy terrorism, doncha know?

[piasa]

fyi

[keri]

ping

[js1138]

So why has it taken over a year for the press to get curious about this?

[ARCADIA]

"The White Guy did it............look for a white guy, forget all other facts or leads." BOLO for the white guy.

They may be PC but they are racist just the same. Why look for a white guy -- well, blacks don't have the organizational skills and discipline to be serial snipers; well, arabs can't make anthrax spores that are more refined than ours or than the Soviets. Hell, only white men can weaponize anthrax.

[EternalHope]

Those who follow this at FreeRepublic have known this for a long time.

My assumption is that the FBI is not really as incompetent as they appear in public. (Hope I'm right...)

Therefore, assuming the FBI is at least marginally competent, the ridiculous story the public has been given was intentional mis-direction. (Also long suspected by many on FreeRepublic.)

Which means the most interesting part of this story is that it came out at all...

Looks like they are slowly letting the cat out of the bag.

[American in Israel]

The kicker for me is the use of bentonite clay as the ionic despersal agent. That is the method that Iraq was developing. We use another method. This guy may be able to make Anthrax but even he cannot do it with bentonite. We flat don't know how. Our research went a different way. The anthrax is clearly traced to SoDamned Insane. I figure that is why we are going to pay him a visit.

[martin gibson]

B-b-b-but this is HATE SPEECH!!!

Out television told us it was that lone, angry, racist white guy.

I mean, who else could it be...?

[jpl]

The F.B.I. should immediately drop it's baseless persecution of Steven Hatfill and offer him a public apology. I won't hold my breath though.