WASHINGTON — The chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee said Wednesday that he does not believe Dr. Bruce Ivins acted alone in the deadly 2001 anthrax attacks.
Sen. Patrick Leahy was one of the targets of the lethal anthrax-laced letters that killed five and sickened 17 in the fall of 2001. At a hearing in front of his committee, the Vermont Democrat told FBI Director Robert Mueller that he thinks other people must have been involved.
Leahy did not say why he believed Ivins had help. He also cast doubt that the Army scientist was the attacker in the first place.
“If he is the one who sent the letter, I do not believe in any way, shape or manner that he is the only person involved in this attack on Congress and the American people. I do not believe that at all,” Leahy said.
He added: “I believe there are others involved, either as accessories before or accessories after the fact. I believe that there are others out there; I believe there are others who could be charged with murder. I just want you to know how I feel about it, as one of the people who was aimed at in the attack.”
Mueller did not directly contradict Leahy, saying, “I understand that concern.” Still, Mueller maintained the Justice Department’s view that Ivins was the mastermind and sole attacker.
“In the investigation to date, we have looked at every lead and followed every lead to determine whether anybody else was involved, and we will continue to do so,” Mueller told Leahy.
The Justice Department and FBI have yet to close the case on the “Amerithrax” investigation after declaring Ivins its only suspect last month. Ivins killed himself in July after learning that prosecutors were preparing to indict him.
Republicans shared Leahy’s doubts surrounding the case.
Sen. Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania, the top GOP member of the panel, demanded a say in selecting scientists who will be performing an independent review of the DNA fingerprinting analysis of the anthrax that lies at the heart of the case.
The review by the National Academy of Sciences will be made up of private scientists who did not assist the FBI in the investigation and could take up to 18 months to finish.
