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Ricin letter sent to White House appears to have originated in Canada: RCMP

Woman was arrested at the New York-Canada border
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FILE - In this Saturday, Sept. 19, 2020, file photo, an American flag flies at half-staff over the White House in Washington. A woman suspected of sending an envelope containing the poison ricin, which was addressed to White House, has been arrested at the New York-Canada border. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky, File)

A ricin letter addressed to the White House appears to have originated in Canada, according to the RCMP. The letter was intercepted last week before it reached the building and a woman was arrested on Sunday (Sept. 20),

Three law enforcement officials told The Associated Press that the woman was arrested at the New York-Canada border and taken into custody by U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers at the Peace Bridge border crossing near Buffalo. She is expected to face federal charges, the officials said, but her name was not immediately released.

The letter was intercepted at a government facility that screens mail addressed to the White House and President Donald Trump and a preliminary investigation indicated it tested positive for ricin, according to the officials who were not authorized to discuss the ongoing investigation publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.

In Canada, Quebec RCMP said their Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear, Explosives team was on scene at the Vauquelin Blvd. in St-Hubert as part of an investigation “related to the contaminated letter sent to the White House.”

There have been several prior instances in which U.S. officials have been targeted with ricin sent through the mail.


@katslepian

katya.slepian@bpdigital.ca

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