Posted on 07/27/2007 10:38:49 AM PDT by flutters
PATASKALA, Ohio - Federal agents searching the home of an accused rapist on Friday were working to determine whether he was intending to make the lethal poison ricin.
On Thursday, authorities converged on the Mink Street home to arrest Stanley Elliott on charges including rape and gross sexual imposition, 10TV's Laura Cole reported.
SLIDESHOW: Images From Scene
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms and the state fire marshal were called to the home at about 5 p.m. after there were reports of chemicals inside. A hazardous materials crew erected a decontamination tent and put on protective suits, Cole reported.
It appeared that castor beans were discovered inside the home. Ricin, considered a weapon of mass destruction, can be made from the waste left over from processing castor beans.
Authorities said that they had credible intelligence that Elliott, 63, was in the process of making ricin, Cole reported.
Chemicals removed from the scene were taken away for testing, Cole reported.
Ricin can be in the form of a powder, a mist or a pellet or it can be dissolved in water of food. It has some potential medical uses, including being used in bone marrow transplants and treating cancer. As little as 500 micrograms of ricin, which would fit onto the head of a pin, could be enough to kill an adult, 10TV News reported.
Elliott remained in the Licking County Jail on Friday, Cole reported.
Ricin Ping
Never heard that term before. I thought "not tonight, I have a headache" was an imposition.
"Not tonight, I have a headache, and you're fat" is a gross imposition.
Anyone know how difficult it is to extract ricin from castor beans? It can’t be too easy, or some wacko would have made a batch and used it before now.
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