AFTERMATH - HUNT FOR THE ANTHRAX KILLER: Transcripts
In the wake of 9/11, anthrax-laced letters unleashed a new wave of terror across the nation. But who was behind the attacks — and why has America nearly forgotten this story?
As government buildings shut down and law enforcement scrambled to track the perpetrator, the FBI launched one of the largest and most complex investigations in its history. Untangling a web of scientific evidence and false leads, the case took unexpected turns with lasting consequences.
From Wolf Entertainment, USG Audio, Dig Studios and CBC, this eight-part series grants unprecedented access to declassified materials and firsthand accounts, revealing how the anthrax attacks reshaped America—and the hidden impact that still lingers today.
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Canada Standard
an hour ago
- Canada Standard
26/11 Terror Attack: Delhi Court grants Tahawwur Rana a one-time phone call, seeks health report from Tihar
New Delhi [India], June 9 (ANI): The Delhi's Patiala House Court on Monday granted 26/11 Mumbai Terror attack accused Tahawwur Rana permission to make a single phone call to his family for the time being. The call will be strictly conducted in accordance with jail regulations and under the supervision of a senior official from the Tihar jail authorities, said the Court. The Additional Sessions Judge (NIA) Chander Jit Singh on Monday also sought a detail status report on Rana's health issues, which must be submitted within 10 days. In its response to the jail authorities, the NIA had approved permission for this one-time phone call. Furthermore, the court has also sought a detailed report from the jail authorities, clarifying their stance on whether Rana should be allowed regular phone calls in the future, as per the Jail Manual. On Friday, the court extended Rana's judicial custody, scheduling his next appearance for July 9. Due to security concerns, he was presented via virtual mode. On the last date of hearing, Rana personally addressed the court, requesting a hearing aid for an ear-related medical issue. Recently, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) collected voice and handwriting samples from Rana, who was extradited from the United States earlier this month. His legal aid counsel, Advocate Piyush Sachdev, confirmed that he fully complied with the court directive. The NIA had previously informed the court that Rana was confronted with substantial evidence related to the 26/11 attacks. The agency argued for further custody, citing his evasive behaviour during questioning and lack of cooperation. Senior Advocate Dayan Krishnan and Special Public Prosecutor Narender Mann represented the NIA in the proceedings, while Advocate Piyush Sachdeva defended Rana. A 64-year-old Canadian businessman of Pakistani origin, Rana, was extradited recently in connection with his alleged involvement in the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks. The devastating attack, orchestrated by Lashkar-e-Taiba, claimed over 170 lives and left hundreds injured. (ANI)
Winnipeg Free Press
15 hours ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Under Patel, FBI heightens focus on violent crime, illegal immigration. Other threats abound, too
WASHINGTON (AP) — FOR MOVEMENT AT 12:01 A.M. ON MONDAY JUNE 9TH When the FBI arrested an accused leader of the MS-13 gang, Kash Patel was there to announce the case, trumpeting it as a step toward returning 'our communities to safety.' Weeks later, when the Justice Department announced the seizure of $510 million in illegal narcotics bound for the U.S, the FBI director joined other law enforcement leaders in front of a Coast Guard ship in Florida and stacks of intercepted drugs to highlight the haul. His presence was meant to signal the premium the FBI is placing on combating violent crime, drug trafficking and illegal immigration, concerns that have leapfrogged up the agenda in what current and former law enforcement officials say amounts to a rethinking of priorities and mission at a time when the country is also confronting increasingly sophisticated national security threats from abroad. A revised FBI priority list on its website places 'Crush Violent Crime' at the top, bringing the bureau into alignment with the vision of President Donald Trump, who has made a crackdown on illegal immigration, cartels and transnational gangs a cornerstone of his administration. Patel has said he wants to 'get back to the basics.' His deputy, Dan Bongino, says the FBI is returning to 'its roots.' Patel says the FBI remains focused on some of the same concerns, including China, that have dominated headlines in recent years, and the bureau said in a statement that its commitment to investigating international and domestic terrorism has not changed. That intensifying threat was laid bare over the past month by a spate of violent acts, most recently a Molotov cocktail attack on a Colorado crowd by an Egyptian man who authorities say overstayed his visa and yelled 'Free Palestine.' 'The FBI continuously analyzes the threat landscape and allocates resources and personnel in alignment with that analysis and the investigative needs of the Bureau,' the FBI said in a statement. 'We make adjustments and changes based on many factors and remain flexible as various needs arise.' Signs of restructuring abound. The Justice Department has disbanded an FBI-led task force on foreign influence and the bureau has moved to dissolve a key public corruption squad in its Washington field office, people familiar with the matter have told The Associated Press. The Trump administration, meanwhile, has proposed steep budget cuts for the FBI, and there's been significant turnover in leadership ranks as some veteran agents with years of experience have been pushed from their positions. Some former officials are concerned the stepped-up focus on violent crime and immigration — areas already core to the mission of agencies including the Drug Enforcement Administration and Immigration and Customs Enforcement — risks deflecting attention from some of the complicated criminal and national security threats for which the bureau has long borne primary if not exclusive responsibility for investigating. 'If you're looking down five feet in front of you, looking for gang members and I would say lower-level criminals, you're going to miss some of the more sophisticated strategic issues that may be already present or emerging,' said Chris Piehota, who retired from the FBI in 2020 as an executive assistant director. A greater focus on immigration Enforcement of immigration laws has long been the principal jurisdiction of immigration agents tasked with arresting people in the U.S. illegally along with border agents who police points of entry. Since Trump's inauguration, the FBI has assumed greater responsibility for that work, saying it's made over 10,000 immigration-related arrests. Patel has highlighted the arrests on social media, doubling down on the administration's promise to prioritize immigration enforcement. Agents have been dispatched to visit migrant children who crossed the U.S-Mexico border without parents in what officials say is an effort to ensure their safety. Field offices have been directed to commit manpower to immigration enforcement. The Justice Department has instructed the FBI to review files for information about those illegally in the U.S. and provide it to the Department of Homeland Security unless doing so would compromise an investigation. And photos on the FBI's Instagram account depict agents with covered faces and tactical gear alongside detained subjects, with a caption saying the FBI is 'ramping up' efforts with immigration agents to locate 'dangerous criminals.' 'We're giving you about five minutes to cooperate,' Bongino said on Fox News about illegal immigrants. 'If you're here illegally, five minutes, you're out.' That's a rhetorical shift from prior leadership. Though Patel's direct predecessor, Christopher Wray, warned about the flow of fentanyl through the southern border and the possibility migrants determined to commit terrorism could illegally cross through, he did not characterize immigration enforcement as core to the FBI's mission. A mandate to 'crush violent crime' There's precedent for the FBI to rearrange priorities to meet evolving threats, though for the past two decades countering terrorism has remained a constant atop the agenda. Then-Director Robert Mueller transformed the FBI after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks into a national security, intelligence-gathering agency. Agents were reassigned from investigations into drugs, violent crime and white-collar fraud to fight terrorism. In a top 10 priority list from 2002, protecting the U.S. from terrorism was first. Fighting violent crime was near the bottom, above only supporting law enforcement partners and technology upgrades. The FBI's new list of priorities places 'Crush Violent Crime' as a top pillar alongside 'Defend the Homeland,' though FBI leaders have also sought to stress that counterterrorism remains the bureau's principal mandate. Wray often said he was hard-pressed to think of a time when the FBI was facing so many elevated threats at once. At the time of his departure last January, the FBI was grappling with elevated terrorism concerns; Iranian assassination plots on U.S. soil; Chinese spying and hacking of Americans' cell phones; ransomware attacks against hospitals; and Russian influence operations aimed at sowing disinformation. Testifying before lawmakers last month, Patel took care to note the surge in terrorism threats following the Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel by Hamas and a Chinese espionage threat he said had yielded investigations in each of the bureau's offices. But the accomplishments he dwelled on first concerned efforts to 'take dangerous criminals off our streets,' including the arrests of three suspects on the 'Ten Most Wanted' list, and large drug seizures. Rounding out the priority list are two newcomers: 'Rebuild Public Trust' and 'Fierce Organizational Accountability.' Those reflect claims amplified by Patel and Bongino that the bureau had become politicized through its years of investigations of Trump, whose Mar-a-Lago home was searched by agents for classified documents in 2022. Close allies of Trump, both men have committed to disclose files from past investigations, including into Russian election interference and the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol, that have fueled grievances against the bureau. They've also pledged to examine matters that have captivated attention in conservative circles, like the leak of a draft Supreme Court opinion that overturned Roe v. Wade. Employees have spent hours poring over documents from the sex trafficking case against financier Jeffrey Epstein, a favorite subject of conspiracy theorists, to prepare them for release. Patel had forecast his interest in rejiggering priorities long before becoming director, including by saying that if he ran the bureau, he would 'let good cops be good cops' and push agents into the field. A critic as a House Republican staffer of the FBI's Trump-Russia investigation, which he calls an example of politicized law enforcement, he had said that he would support breaking off the FBI's 'intel shops' to focus on crime-fighting. James Gagliano, a retired FBI supervisor, said he would like to see more specific information about the new priorities but was heartened by an enhanced violent crime focus so long as other initiatives weren't abandoned. 'Mission priorities change,' Gagliano said. 'The threat matrix changes. You've got to constantly get out in front of that.' Terrorism threats persist The Trump administration has touted several terrorism successes, including the arrests of a suspected participant in a suicide bombing at the Kabul airport that killed 13 American servicemembers and of an ex-Michigan National Guard member on charges of plotting a military base attack on behalf of the Islamic State. But the administration is also employing a broad definition of what it believes constitutes terrorism. FBI and Justice Department officials see the fight against transnational gangs as part of their counterterrorism mandate, taking advantage of the Trump administration's designation of the violent street gangs MS-13 and Tren de Aragua as foreign terrorist organizations to bring terrorism-related charges against defendants, including a Venezuelan man suspected of being a high-ranking TdA member and a Utah father-son suspected of providing material support to a Mexican cartel — a charge typically used for cases involving groups like the Islamic State and al-Qaida. A former Justice Department terrorism prosecutor, Patel has called the FBI's Joint Terrorism Task Forces — interagency units in the bureau's 55 field offices — as 'shining examples' of its mission. Those task forces spent years pursuing suspects in the Capitol riot but have now been enlisted to track down cartel members, he has said. After an Egyptian man whose work authorization in the U.S. had expired was arrested on charges of using a homemade flamethrower and Molotov cocktails to attack a group drawing attention to Israeli hostages in Gaza, administration officials held up the case as proof of their philosophy that immigration enforcement is tantamount to protecting national security. The FBI says its domestic terrorism investigations continue uninterrupted, though Patel at times has discussed the threat in different terms than Wray, who led the bureau as it investigated the Capitol riot and who cited it as evidence of the dangers of homegrown extremists. At hearings last month, Patel pointed to a string of arsons and vandalism acts at Tesla dealerships as domestic terrorism acts that commanded the FBI's resources and attention. As it reconfigures its resources, the FBI has moved to reassign some agents focused on domestic terrorism to a new task force set up to investigate the Oct. 7 Hamas attack and its aftermath, according to people familiar with the matter who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss personnel moves. One national security concern Patel has preached continuity on in public is the threat from China, which he said in a recent Fox News interview keeps him up at night. Wray often called China the gravest long-term threat to national security, and when he stepped aside in January the FBI was contending with an espionage operation that gave officials in Beijing access to private texts and phone conversations of an unknown number of Americans. There are signs of a broader national security realignment. A task force tracking foreign influence, like Russia's attempts to interfere in American democracy, was disbanded and the Justice Department has scaled back criminal enforcement of a statute requiring registration of U.S. lobbying on behalf of foreign entities. All of that concerns retired FBI supervisor Frank Montoya, a longtime counterintelligence official who says fentanyl and drug cartels are not 'existential' threats in the same way Russia and China are. When it comes to complicated, interagency espionage work, the FBI, he said, has always 'been the glue that made it all work.' Patel makes no apologies for priorities he says come from the White House. 'President Trump has set some priorities out in a new focus for federal law enforcement,' he has said. 'The FBI has heard those directions, and we are determined to deliver on our crime-fighting and national security mission with renewed vigor.'
CTV News
2 days ago
- CTV News
Clashes resume in Los Angeles area as immigration enforcement draws new protests
Police detain a protester blocking the garage entrance of the Los Angeles Federal Building, following multiple detentions by Immigration and Customs Enforcement, in downtown Los Angeles on Friday. (Daniel Cole/Reuters via CNN Newsource) For a second consecutive day, tear gas and flash bangs have been used to disperse protests over immigration activity in the Los Angeles area. On Saturday, protesters gathered in Paramount, California. Assemblymember José Luis Solache said four people were arrested. The FBI is investigating alleged instances of demonstrators obstructing immigration enforcement operations in Los Angeles Friday and Saturday, the bureau's deputy director, Dan Bongino, said on social media Saturday. Los Angeles portest Protesters push a garbage cart as they try to block the garage entrance of the Los Angeles Federal Building. (Daniel Cole/Reuters via CNN Newsource) The Department of Justice criticized California officials as protests over federal immigration enforcement operations entered a second day Saturday. 'The violent targeting of law enforcement in Los Angeles by lawless rioters is despicable and Mayor Bass and Governor Newsom must call for it to end. The men and women of ICE put their lives on the line to protect and defend the lives of American citizens,' said Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin in a Saturday statement. The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department said it was not involved in immigration enforcement and was working to ensure the safety of the public. 'The Sheriff's Department was not involved in any federal law enforcement operations or actions and responded solely for traffic and crowd control management,' the LASD said in a statement. Protests started Friday The protests started Friday afternoon. Police on Friday night issued a citywide tactical alert nearly two hours after declaring protests across the downtown area unlawful assemblies. 'The use of less lethal munitions has been authorized by the Incident Commander,' LAPD's Central Division wrote in a post on X. Videos of the scene show law enforcement officers in riot gear, wielding batons, holding shields and throwing smoke bombs into the crowd. Protesters chanted 'Free them all' and held signs with messages including 'Full Rights for All Immigrants' and 'Stop the Deportations.' Video shows several officers in riot gear pinning at least one person to the ground. Los Angeles protests Los Angeles Police Department officers move to disperse a protest. (Jae C. Hong/AP via CNN Newsource) The protest came after at least 44 people were arrested by federal immigration agents earlier in the day, The Associated Press reported, after Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers executed search warrants at three locations, according to a spokesperson for Homeland Security Investigations. The arrests come amid U.S. President Donald Trump's crackdown on immigration, which has involved waves of raids and deportations across the country. Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass characterized the immigration arrests as 'mass chaos,' according to CNN affiliate KABC. The mayor said she hadn't been told about the raids in advance. 'It sows a sense of terror throughout the community,' she said. 'ICE was literally chasing people down the street.' The federal law enforcement activity came on the same day multiple sources told CNN the Trump administration is preparing for 'large-scale' cancellation of federal funds for California. CNN has reached out to the Department of Homeland Security for further information. One of the Friday raids was in the city's Fashion District, where agents served a search warrant after a judge determined a business was allegedly using fictitious documents for some of its workers, U.S. Attorney's office spokesperson Ciaran McEvoy told CNN. Union leader arrested David Huerta, the president of the Service Employees International Union California, was arrested by federal agents after allegedly attempting to obstruct their access at a worksite, U.S. Attorney for the Central District of California Bill Essayli said in a post on X. 'Let me be clear: I don't care who you are—if you impede federal agents, you will be arrested and prosecuted,' Essayli said. After being treated for injuries from his arrest, Huerta released a statement condemning the citywide raids. 'Hard-working people, and members of our family and our community, are being treated like criminals,' he said. 'We all collectively have to object to this madness because this is not justice. This is injustice. And we all have to stand on the right side of justice.' 'No one should ever be harmed for witnessing government action,' California Gov. Gavin Newsom said in a statement responding to Huerta's arrest, describing the union president as a 'respected leader, a patriot and an advocate for working people.' Bass said Friday's immigration arrests were different from previous, more organized actions. 'I've been really worried about this from the beginning, and as far as I know, this is the first time this has happened in our city like this,' she told KABC. 'We know ICE has been here, but it's been for targeted arrests; this was just mass chaos.' 'It sows a sense of chaos in our city, and a sense of terror, and it's just unacceptable.' The American Civil Liberties Union called on 'elected officials to uphold their commitment to all Angelenos — immigrants and non-immigrants alike — by taking all action necessary to grind this oppressive and vile paramilitary operation to a halt and keep our city safe and whole' in a Friday statement. Protesters face off with police Protesters gathered outside the Federal Building in downtown Los Angeles at roughly 4 p.m., CNN affiliate KABC reported. At one point, hundreds of activists began marching toward a detention facility on Temple Street. Los Angeles protest Protesters hold placards as they gather around the Los Angeles Federal Building. (Daniel Cole/Reuters via CNN Newsource) One video obtained by CNN shows protesters retreating from the building's entrance after coming face-to-face with the police guarding it. Several projectiles are thrown at officers equipped with body armor and protective shields. Other videos show the detention center sprayed with anti-ICE graffiti, with some protesters blocking LAPD vehicles close by. Families and friends who had loved ones taken by immigration authorities visited the detention center to learn more about their status, KABC reported. A young woman who spoke with the outlet said she went to the building in tears after her father was taken by federal agents. The LAPD declared an unlawful assembly around 7 p.m. and warned demonstrators were subject to arrest if they remained in the area. Aerial footage from KABC shows law enforcement throwing smoke bombs on a street to disperse people so they could make way for SUVs and military-style vehicles. 'While the LAPD will continue to have a visible presence in all our communities to ensure public safety, we will not assist or participate in any sort of mass deportations, nor will the LAPD try to determine an individual's immigration status,' Police Chief Jim McDonnell said in a statement about the immigration enforcement activities. 'I want everyone, including our immigrant community, to feel safe calling the police in their time of need and know that the LAPD will be there for you without regard to one's immigration status.' Newsom said in a Saturday statement, 'Continued chaotic federal sweeps, across California, to meet an arbitrary arrest quota are as reckless as they are cruel.' 'Donald Trump's chaos is eroding trust, tearing families apart, and undermining the workers and industries that power America's economy,' the governor said. Article by Karina Tsui and Zoe Sottile.
