Truckers search for ricin sender

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The American Trucking Association told thousands of truckers in its safety network to watch for anyone acting aggressively or suspiciously, especially people displaying any kind of "attack planning characteristics."

Truckers were asked to call the association's Highway Watch program to pass information to the FBI and South Carolina's Joint Terrorism Task Force, which are investigating the Oct. 15 incident.

Jack Legler, director of security for the Trucking Association, declined to say whether any tips have proved useful. The Highway Watch network involves thousands of truckers who are trained to spot unsafe or suspicious activity. Between 300 and 500 calls come in every month, reporting everything from accidents to spills to normal unsafe operation issues, he said.

"Mixed in with all of that is the observation of unusual activities, which can either be criminal or possibly terrorist in nature," he said.

In a bulletin to members, the association reported the package left at the airport mail center off Pelham Road contained a letter that said water supplies would be contaminated if a new federal rule requiring rest for truckers is not repealed by January.

The letter specifically threatened the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, which regulates trucking. The letter writer threatened to use "large quantities" of ricin, which is made from the waste of processing castor beans. It can be a powder, a mist or a pellet.

Ricin can kill an adult male within 48 hours of exposure and is 30 times more deadly than nerve gas. Federal officials issued an alert last May saying the poison could be used by terrorists.

Spokesmen for the FBI have declined to answer specific questions about the investigation because it is ongoing.

Law enforcement authorities were notified six hours after the package was found at Greenville's airport mail center, and authorities did not tell the public, postal workers or other emergency services about the poison until it was tested and positively identified a week later.

The mail center was closed briefly that day. The poison was in a water-tight, metal vial. No one has been reported harmed in the incident.The FBI has polygraphed postal workers and at least one truck driver, the president of a local chapter of the postal workers union told The Greenville News last week.

According to the Trucking Association bulletin, the fall months, through the end of November, "has been international terrorism's most active, historically."

Highway Watch truckers have reported suspicious activity in recent weeks "that could either be criminal or terrorist in intent," according to the bulletin.