Pieces of laboratory equipment recovered by the FBI from a pond near Frederick, Md., have led to a new theory in the bureau’s long-running investigation into the autumn 2001 anthrax attacks, the Washington Post reported yesterday (see GSN, Jan. 7).

In December 2002 and January of this year, the FBI conducted two searches of a section of forest outside Frederick, using divers to investigate a set of ponds in the area.  In one pond divers recovered a clear box with holes that could accommodate gloves, as well as vials wrapped in plastic, according to two sources familiar with the investigation.

The recovered items have led to a new theory on how the the anthrax culprit might have prepared the attacks, according to the Post.  Some FBI officials have suggested that the person responsible could have placed dry envelopes and anthrax spores into a sealed airtight and waterproof box and then stood in the pond to fill the envelopes, the Post reported.  When the envelopes were filled, they could have then been placed inside layers of plastic sandwich bags and removed from the box.

By working in water, the person responsible for the attacks might have been able to protect himself from the spores, which can easily disperse in the air, according to the Post.  Some scientists have suggested that the FBI should test the sediment at the bottom of the pond for traces of anthrax spores.

The FBI now plans to drain one of the ponds to search for more discarded evidence, according to sources.  The bureau has notified the city of Frederick and the Maryland Natural Resources Department that it will begin the operation by June 1 (Marilyn Thompson, Washington Post, May 11).

Frederick Mayor Jennifer Dougherty yesterday said the FBI is interested in draining one of the ponds in the forest.

“They have probably found something that tickles their interest, which is why they keep coming back,” Dougherty said in an interview with the Washington Times.  “Obviously, they want to find other evidence.  And they think that, as I recall, they want to find other things being hidden by the muck,” she said (S.A. Miller, Washington Times, May 12).

The new theory has added to the FBI’s interest in former U.S. Army biologist Steven Hatfill, who has been the public focus of the bureau’s investigation into the anthrax attacks, according to the Washington Post.  Hatfill formerly lived in an apartment less than 10 miles from the ponds, the Post reported.

Hatfill’s attorney, Thomas Connolly, has denied that his client had anything to do with the anthrax attacks.  He said it would not be unusual for the FBI to find discarded laboratory equipment in the ponds near Frederick, where many research laboratories and biotech companies are located.  Connolly also said that someone operating a methamphetamine laboratory might have discarded the recovered equipment (Thompson, Washington Post).

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