Two identical letters sent last week containing threats to New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg have tested positive for the deadly ricin toxin, authorities confirmed Wednesday.
Both letters were postmarked from Louisiana with the threats reportedly focused on opposition to gun regulation reform.
The first letter, addressed to Mayor Bloomberg, was opened at a New York City mail center in lower Manhattan on Friday. Several police officers who came in contact with the letter are being observed to monitor minor symptoms possibly related to the ricin exposure.
The second letter was addressed to Mark Glaze, director of Mayors Against Illegal Guns, a group funded by Mayor Bloomberg. Mr. Glaze did open the letter but authorities state no injuries were reported.
According to a New York Police Department’s spokesman, Paul J. Browne, the letters contained a “pink, orange oily substance. Tests performed this week at the National Bioforensic Analysis Center in Maryland confirmed earlier locally performed tests which also indicated ricin.
Read more at ABC News: Ricin-Laced Letters Sent to Michael Bloomberg Contained Angry Note Over Gun Control.
