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From: Gerry Lovell <ed@farshore.force9.co.uk>
Date: Fri, 28 Aug 1998 00:24:12 +0100
Fwd Date: Fri, 28 Aug 1998 02:30:10 -0400
Subject: Art Bell In 'Anthrax' Scare


Source: The Wichita Eagle
Date: Aug 27  1998
Header: 20 FBI agents on hoax case
Sub-header: The search for the person responsible for the State
Office Building anthrax scare has stretched to the Nevada home
of syndicated talk show host Art Bell. Byline: Hurst Laviana

A task force of 20 FBI agents has been assembled to follow up on
160 leads in the hunt for whoever was responsible for last
week's anthrax scare at the Finney State Office Building in
Wichita, federal agents said Wednesday.

The investigation has stretched as far as Nevada, where a
talk-show host specializing in topics such as alien sightings
and conspiracy theories received a copy of the same threat note
that accompanied a harmless white powder that was scattered in
the Wichita office building.

The note falsely claimed the powder was anthrax, a deadly
biological toxin.

Larry McCormick, special agent in charge of FBI offices in
Kansas and western Missouri, said investigators are focusing
their efforts on a rambling anti-government letter that
accompanied copies of the threat note that were sent to the
Nevada radio host and to a Wichita television station.

The FBI is convinced that the letters, which appeared to be
identical, were written by the same person who claimed
responsibility for the Aug. 18 anthrax threat.

Although there was no authentic danger to the public,
authorities closed the office building for two days, idling
hundreds of government workers and inconveniencing thousands of
patrons.

A group calling itself the Brothers for the Freedom of Americans
claimed responsibility. The letters sent by the group claimed it
is affiliated with "Christian Identity" militia orgnizations in
the United States and revolutionaries in Northern Ireland, the
FBI said.

McCormick said the first letter arrived at KWCH-TV, Channel 12,
a day after the anthrax scare. A second later arrived at the
home of radio personality Art Bell, whose late-night talk show
is carried on more than 300 stations including KFH-1330 AM in
Wichita. Both letters consisted of 11 pages and were mailed in
Wichita on the day of the scare, the FBI said. Both copies of
the letter are being examined by the FBI lab in Washington, D.C.

Bell said he had no idea why the letter was sent to him.

"And I'm not at all happy about it," he said in an interview
from his home in Pahrump, Nev. "You might imagine it a hoax, but
it didn't read like a hoax. It read like somebody who was aware
of what he was doing. ... There were specific demands and there
were specific threats."

Bell said that when his wife opened the letter, the first thing
she noticed were the words, "Congratulations -- you've been
infected." State Office Building workers reported seeing the
same words on the note found inside the building on Aug. 18.

McCormick said chemical tests showed that the powder left in the
building was a common household substance that was not being
publicly identified by the FBI.

"It is non-toxic, it is non-hazardous, and it could be found in
any house," he said.

McCormick said the contents of the letter were not being
disclosed, but that "it just sort of rambles on about their
anti-government beliefs."

Bell said that was a good characterization of the letter he
received. After reading it, he said, he posted a copy to his
Internet Web site so people in Wichita could see what the
threats entailed.

"The FBI came to see me the next day with evidence bags and
gloves," he said.

Bell said he complied with the FBI's request to temporarily
remove the letter from the Web site after agents told him it
could interfere with their investigation.

Bell also said he was complying with the FBI's request not to
discuss specifics of the letter.

McCormick said he didn't know exactly how much powder was spread
throughout the building, but that "it wasn't buckets. Handfuls
might be the way to put it."

Agents are continuing to seek help from the public, who can
forward information by calling Crime Stoppers anonymously at
267-2111.

Bill Seck, who heads the FBI office in Wichita, said the federal
government takes threats seriously in light of the Oklahoma City
bombing and other acts of terrorism both at home and abroad.

McCormick said he has not yet tried to determine a cost of the
State Office Building investigation.

"Those bills will add up, but I can't (give) you a number," he
said.

He said he has not heard of any other cases involving anthrax
scares.

"We do have strange people throughout this country who do
strange things," he said. "There are none that that are directly
related to this."

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 > > >  Gerry Lovell / Far Shores |http://www.farshore.force9.co.uk
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