Arrest Made in Case of Poisoned Letter Sent to Trump
A Canadian woman has been arrested in connection with a letter containing ricin that was sent to President Donald Trump.
The woman, whose name was not immediately released, was deported by U.S. officials last year after being arrested in Texas, according to The New York Times.
She was detained on Sunday while trying to enter the United States at the border of New York state and is being held pending charges that are expected to be filed against her on Monday.
According to law enforcement officials, the woman had a gun on her at the time of her arrest, CNN reported.
Although non-essential travel between the U.S. and Canada has been banned during the battle against the coronavirus, some limited travel remains. According to WGRZ-TV, the woman was arrested at the Peace Bridge, which connects Buffalo, New York, with Canada.
Last week, envelopes containing ricin were sent to Trump as well as a sheriff’s office and detention facility in Texas. All mail for the White House is sorted and screened before it ever gets to the White House.
Ricin is a highly toxic substance produced from the waste of making castor oil.
A Canadian woman has been arrested by Border Patrol for sending a letter with ricin to Donald Trump. She attempted to cross the border into New York with a firearm. https://t.co/sM8HNPxUM6
— Jack Posobiec ?? (@JackPosobiec) September 21, 2020
The woman was arrested in March 2019 in Mission, Texas, for possession of an unlicensed weapon, resisting arrest and carrying a fake driver’s license, the Times reported, quoting what it said was a “senior intelligence official.”
While in jail, officials found she had overstayed a six-month visa and violated the terms of her passport by committing a crime. She was then deported.
CNN quoted what it said was a “person familiar with the investigation” as saying the letter was mailed from St. Hubert, Quebec.
The Times said its sources said officials found no link between the letter and terrorist groups.
“An arrest was made of an individual allegedly responsible for sending a suspicious letter,” the FBI said in a statement. “The investigation is ongoing.”
“We are aware of the concerning reports of packages containing ricin directed toward US federal government sites,” Mary-Liz Power, chief spokeswoman for Canada’s Minister of Public Safety Bill Blair, said to CNN.
“Canadian law enforcement is working closely with their US counterparts. As this is an active investigation we cannot comment further.”
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, it takes a “deliberate act” to try and poison someone with ricin.
“It would take a deliberate act to make ricin and use it to poison people,” the CDC says.
“Unintentional exposure to ricin is highly unlikely, except through the ingestion of castor beans.”
There is no known antidote for the poison.
“Because no antidote exists for ricin, the most important factor is avoiding ricin exposure in the first place,” the CDC says.
“If exposure cannot be avoided, the most important factor is then getting the ricin off or out of the body as quickly as possible.”
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