The 9/11 File/CASE 42/2001 – 2011

What came after

The anthrax letters

The second attack of fall 2001, and the scientist the FBI blamed

RECORD / AT A GLANCE

Disputed

Disputed. The FBI concluded Bruce Ivins acted alone. He died before charges and was never tried. The National Academies found the science alone could not settle where the anthrax came from, though it was consistent with the FBI’s flask. The FBI’s case points to a domestic source, not al Qaeda.

THE EVENTS / THE INVESTIGATION / THE STORY

The chronology.

READ THE FILE

Evidence & assessment.

01

The FBI’s case

Ten thousand interviews and one suspect.

↗02

What the science could show

Consistent with, not proof of.

↗

Open an article for its evidence, labeled AI assessment and numbered sources. Read the complete static edition ↗

WHAT PEOPLE SAY ABOUT THIS FILE

The claims, rated.

3 claims people make about this file, each rated documented, partly true, disputed, unproven or false. Think a rating is wrong? Use Dispute or Support, or join the Discussion.

DISPUTED Wars, surveillance & the aftermath

“Bruce Ivins sent the anthrax letters.”

The FBI concluded so; he died before charges, and the National Academies found the science alone could not settle it.

Who says it: FBI; skeptics.

The evidence in this file ↗ · On the full claims board ↗

FALSE Wars, surveillance & the aftermath

“Al Qaeda or Iraq sent the anthrax letters.”

No evidence ties the letters to al Qaeda or Iraq. The FBI concluded an Army scientist acted alone, and the science was consistent with a flask at his lab.

Who says it: Early speculation.

The evidence in this file ↗ · On the full claims board ↗

All 162 rated claims ↗

OPEN THE RECORD

Sources & limits.

Numbered citations in each article identify the relevant sources. These records have different purposes and evidentiary weight.

  1. FBI: Amerithrax or anthrax investigation ↗

    The Bureau’s case against Bruce Ivins.

  2. National Academies, 2011: summary of the review of the FBI’s anthrax science (NCBI Bookshelf) ↗

    “It is not possible to reach a definitive conclusion about the origins” of the anthrax from the science alone.

  3. FBI and Justice Department, February 2011: response to the National Academies review ↗

    The Bureau says the whole investigation, not science alone, identified Bruce Ivins.

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