Here is the link and the article - very disturbing.
http://yumasun.com/artman/publish/articles/story_9026.shtml Courts and Police
FBI checking white powder found in car
Jan 7, 2004
FBI agents are analyzing some white powder found in a vehicle on Interstate 8 near Felicity, Calif., that is suspected to be an ingredient for a toxic substance, California Highway Patrol officers said.
The driver and passenger of the vehicle, Ebony Woods and Astrid Tepatti, both 21 and of California, were arrested by the California Highway Patrol and booked into Imperial County jail for alleged possession of a concealed weapon and stolen property, officers said.
The white powder, which the CHP believes is an ingredient for ricin, was found in the late-model Hyundai after officers gained probable cause to inspect the car early Monday morning, said CHP officer Joseph Miller.
Officers also found other chemical ingredients for ricin — which is a lethal, natural poison that comes from castor beans — in the vehicle and a recipe for how to make the poison.
Miller said CHP is suspicious that Woods and Tepatti may have had motive to use the materials as a lethal weapon.
The investigation of the chemicals and white powder was handed over to the FBI, Miller said.
Meanwhile, CHP officers arrested the two females after they noticed the Hyundai pulled over on the side of the westbound lanes of I-8 near Felicity, Calif., and stopped to check it out early Monday morning, Miller said.
Officers found evidence of recent damage to the vehicle and became suspicious when Woods and Tepatti told different stories of what happened to the vehicle, Miller said.
The officers inspected the car and found a concealed handgun and stolen clothing, Miller said.
CHP later found out Woods and Tepatti were involved in a recent collision near Calexico.
The CHP originally contacted the city of Yuma Fire Department Hazardous Materials Crew to determine if the white powder was ricin. The results were negative. Yuma Fire Department was called because it had the closest Haz Mat team to the scene of the incident.
CHP then handed over the powder and other chemicals to the FBI, which has taken over the investigation.
Ricin is a naturally toxic compound that is highly poisonous; less than a pinpoint can kill a human if it is ingested, injected or inhaled. It has no known cure.
Ricin potentially can be used as an agent of biological warfare and as a weapon of mass destruction.