Police continue to gather evidence in ricin case

Published 2:18 pm Tuesday, June 9, 2009

EVERETT – Investigators today returned to gather evidence at the home where ricin was found last week.

Officers were first called to the home after a domestic violence dispute. The husband and wife both were hospitalized.

Everett police and the FBI later found traces of ricin, a deadly toxin, in the home. Tests also confirmed the toxin was present in the woman’s body.

A judge Monday ordered the man, Jeffery C. Marble, 48, held in lieu of $1 million bail.

It’s still not safe to go inside the home, Everett police Sgt. Robert Goetz said.

“It’s still contaminated, and that’s why we have guys in hazmat suits going in there,” he said.

Specialists from the Environmental Protection Agency and the Everett police hazmat team are assisting detectives, Goetz said.

Everett firefighters also are at the scene to help decontaminate people who are involved in searching the home.

Evidence now is being sent to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta to confirm the ricin findings, according to court documents.