Suspect Makes Court Appearance in Ricin Case

A Mississippi martial arts instructor appeared in federal court on Monday to face charges in connection with mailing letters containing the deadly poison ricin to President Barack Obama and other U.S. officials.

Everett Dutschke, 41, was arrested on Saturday in Tupelo, Mississippi, after authorities searched his former business and home. He is charged with developing and possessing ricin and attempting to use it as a weapon.

Wearing an orange prison jumpsuit, Dutschke responded briefly to a judge’s questions at the hearing in Oxford, Mississippi, on whether he understood the charges against him. The judge ordered a preliminary hearing be held on Thursday when prosecutors will present more detailed evidence in the case.

Dutschke has denied having any involvement with the ricin letters and said he cooperated with federal officials during their searches.

He faces a possible life sentence if convicted.

Dutschke’s arrest came nearly two weeks after suspicious letters intended for Obama and U.S. Senator Roger Wicker of Mississippi were intercepted in Washington. Tests showed they were tainted with ricin, a highly lethal poison made from castor beans. A separate ricin-lased letter was also sent to a Mississippi judge.

The case rekindled memories of the 2001 U.S. anthrax attacks that killed five people and puzzled investigators for years. The Justice Department later said that a U.S. scientist who committed suicide was responsible.

This article appeared in print on page 1 of the April 30th, 2013 edition of Hamodia.