Mayor Bloomberg received threatening letters laced with the deadly chemical ricin and the anonymous writer was set off by hizzoner’s stance on the controversial gun control debate.
The poisonous correspondence was opened on Friday in the city’s Gold Street mail facility in lower Manhattan after something in the way the letters were addressed raised suspicion.
Member’s of the NYPD’s Emergency Services unit were exposed to the chemical inside of the envelope, which also contained a letter that threatened the mayor’s life.
On Sunday the director of Mayors Against Illegal Guns received similar ricin laden threats, officials said.
The letter had “references to the debate on gun laws,” said NYPD spokesman Paul Browne in a written statement.
“The letter obviously referred to our anti-gun efforts,” said Bloomberg, who vowed not to back down from his efforts.
“I know I speak for all of the close to 1,000 mayors in the Mayors Coalition Against Guns this is a scourge on the country that we just have to make sure that we get under control and eliminate,” Bloomberg said.
The letters all originated from Shreveport, Louisiana, according to a law enforcement source. They were post-marked from the same location, on the same day.
The cops who were exposed, were treated for minor symptoms of ricin exposure, Browne said.
National Bioforensic Analysis Center in Maryland tested the pink and orange oily substance from the letters today and preliminary tests show the presence of ricin,” police said.
In April, letters containing ricin were sent to President Obama, Sen. Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) and an 80-year-old Mississippi judge, Sadie Holland.
FBI agents initially arrested Elvis impersonator Paul Kevin Curtis, 45, for sending the letters but later dropped charges when it was discovered that he had been set up by a foe.
J. Everett Dutschke, 21, of Tupelo, Miss. was later nabbed for the crime.
The FBI Joint Terrorism Task Force and the NYPD Intelligence Division, responsible for the mayor’s safety, are investigating.