Law enforcement intercepts package containing ricin addressed to Trump

by Kaelan Deese - 09/19/20 3:29 PM ET

Law enforcement earlier this week intercepted a package addressed to President Trump containing the poison ricin, according to two officials.

Two tests were conducted to confirm the substance in the package was ricin, CNN reported.

Mail for the White House is screened and sorted at a facility away from the building before it arrives to the president.

The FBI and Secret Service are investigating the matter.

“The FBI and our U.S. Secret Service and U.S. Postal Inspection Service partners are investigating a suspicious letter received at a U.S. government mail facility. At this time, there is no known threat to public safety,” a spokesperson for the FBI told The Hill.

Ricin is a toxic compound made from castor bean extract that has been used in previous terror plans and assassination attempts.

The substance can come in the form of powder, pellet, mist or acid.

Ingestion causes nausea, vomiting and internal bleeding of the stomach and intestines. It can also result in failure of the liver, spleen and kidneys and the fatal collapse of the circulatory system.

In 2018, a former Navy veteran was charged with sending toxic letters to the Pentagon and White House.

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