Thread: Kenneth Curtis of Tupelo arrested in connection with ricin letters

Kenneth Curtis of Tupelo arrested in connection with ricin letters

Apr. 17, 2013 6:32 PM



Mississippi Sentator Roger Wicker seen in 2008. A letter sent to Wicker by Kenneth Curtis of Tupelo tested positive for ricin. / AP

Written by Therese Apel and Jerry Mitchell

Federal sources have confirmed to The Clarion-Ledger that Kenneth Curtis of Tupelo has been arrested in connection with letters laced with ricin that were sent to Sen. Roger Wicker and President Barack Obama.
Federal authorities were in Tupelo on Wednesday investigating the letters. Both letters were signed: "I am KC and I approve this message."
Agents with the Secret Service and the FBI used the Lee County Sheriff’s Department as a staging area for their investigation. Lee County Sheriff Jim Johnson confirmed an investigation, but would not comment on the nature of the investigation.
“We have an investigation that is going on that has got local and federal authorities working together,”
he said.
The letter, received by Wicker’s office on Tuesday, had a Memphis postmark and no return address, Senate Sergeant at Arms Terrance Gainer wrote in an e-mail to senators and aides. Tupelo’s mail is routed through Memphis.
The ricin was confirmed by preliminary tests on Tuesday. On Wednesday, Obama received a similar letter, and once again, preliminary tests showed there was ricin in it.
An FBI bulletin stated that both letters, postmarked April 8, included the identical phrase: "to see a wrong and not expose it, is to become a silent partner to its continuance."
Wicker, a Pontotoc native who has an office in Tupelo, has been assigned a protective detail.
Wicker serves in the Senate as deputy whip and on the the Armed Services, Budget, Commerce, Environment and Public Works, and Joint Economic Committees. He has been a middle-of-the-road senator in the Republican Conference, ranking as the 27th most conservative member of the upper chamber, according to the National Journal. He is known to be conservative on most social issues.
Wicker has stood firmly against Obama’s health-care law. He is a recipient of an A+ rating from the National Rifle Association, though he was one of 16 Republican senators who last week stepped over party lines with his party to vote in favor of beginning the debate on a gun-control bill.
Thursday’s 68-31 roll call gave an early burst of momentum to efforts by Obama and lawmakers to push fresh gun curbs through Congress. The National Rifle Association, along with many Republicans and some moderate Democrats, say the proposals go too far, and the road to congressional approval of major restrictions remains rocky.
Wicker’s vote brought ire from conservatives all over the country, with postings shared on social media calling for his removal from office. Wicker responded to those with a statement on his own Facebook.
“My vote is in accord with the NRA’s position. I have never voted for gun control and will not do so. This begins a debate to put the Senate on record about a basic constitutional freedom,” he posted. “Bringing this bill to the floor gives us the opportunity to vote on measures to strengthen gun rights, such as an amendment to protect veterans from unfair restrictions when trying to purchase a firearm. I will filibuster passage of a final bill if it contains gun restrictions or a weapons ban.”
Ricin is a highly toxic substance derived from castor beans. As little as 500 micrograms -- an amount the size of the head of a pin -- can kill an adult. There is no specific test for exposure and no antidote once exposed.
http://www.clarionledger.com/article/20130417/NEWS/304170067/Kenneth-Curtis-Tupelo-arrested-connection-ricin-letters?odyssey=mod%7Cbreaking%7Ctext%7CHome

RELATED http://www.alipac.us/f9/envelope-tes...cility-276340/

FBI Identifies Suspect in Ricin Letters as Paul Kevin Curtis, 45, of Corinth, Miss.



OXFORD, Miss. April 18, 2013 (AP)

FBI identifies suspect in ricin letters as Paul Kevin Curtis, 45, of Corinth, Miss.