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California Man Arrested for Anthrax Threats
A California man was arrested Monday for sending letters containing a white powder to several federal and private offices in the state, The Argus reported (see GSN, Oct. 13, 2005). Paul Charles Steeves, 43, appeared in court yesterday in Oakland to face federal charges of sending threatening communications across state lines via the Internet and of conveying false and misleading information indicating use of biological weapons. He remains in custody and is scheduled for another hearing Friday. Steeves allegedly sent letters to the U.S. Probation Office in Oakland, the New Bridge Foundation in Berkeley, and in FBI office in Watsonville. Each letter arrived last week. They all contained a white powder and a piece of paper on which Steeves’ name was signed, according to an FBI affidavit. Also in the envelopes were pictures of actress Drew Barrymore, a picture of the 2001 World Trade Center attack, and handwritten and typewritten text referring to an acquaintance of Barrymore. Hazardous materials teams from the FBI tested the substance in each letter, which turned out to be harmless. Prosecutors also claim that Steeves on Internet message boards threatened to carry out a chemical attack on Jan. 16. “Tell Drew Barrymore that I, Paul Steeves in Santa Cruz, had expected her to peacefully contact me. Now it’s war,” he wrote on a Barrymore fan site. When arrested, Steeves told authorities he was “glad you guys came because I was going to keep mailing those letters for the next 15 or 20 years.” Investigators also found photographs of Barrymore, baking soda and photocopies of text identical to the copy in the letter. If convicted, Steeves faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $500,000 fine, plus restitution (Josh Richman, The Argus, Jan. 25). Meanwhile, a Maryland man was sentenced to 2 1/2 years in prison for sending anthrax threat letters containing white powder, the Washington Post reported yesterday. Robert Finch pleaded guilty in October to mailing threatening communications. Court document said in March 2005 he sent letters with the white powder to courthouses in Garrett and Worcester counties in Maryland, to police in Alaska and to a former police chief in Kentucky. He also sent letters threatening Baltimore County State's Attorney Sandra O'Connor and her family, as well as a bomb-threat letter to a Kentucky elementary school (Washington Post, Jan. 24).
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