DOVER TOWNSHIP, N.J. – The bioterrorism expert whose homes were raided by FBI agents investigating the anthrax attacks had sought a patent for a system to identify chemical and biological strikes in September 2001.
Dr. Kenneth Berry filed a provisional patent for the system in October 2000 and filed the actual patent application just days after the first anthrax letters were mailed. He touted the system as an effective way to respond to bioterrorism attacks.
“In an era where chemical, biological or nuclear attacks at one or more locations either globally or within a country are possible, it is desirable to have a surveillance system capable of locating and identifying the type of attack so that a rapid response can be initiated,” according to a description of the invention.
Berry has not been tied to the attacks, and told police that he had nothing to do with anthrax, Point Pleasant Beach Police Chief Daniel DePolo said at a news conference Friday.
“He just denied he was guilty of anything,” DePolo said.
On Thursday, more than three dozen agents, some in protective suits, combed through two homes listed in property records as Berry’s past and present addresses in Wellsville, N.Y., a village of 5,000 residents near the Pennsylvania line.
About 250 miles southeast, the New Jersey beach home of Berry’s parents was also searched, and neighbors said investigators brought out bulky garbage bags and towed away two vehicles, later returning one. There was no sign of further police activity there Friday.
The FBI said the public was not in immediate danger, but declined to say what agents were seeking.
The searches came nearly three years after five people were killed and 17 fell ill when anthrax-laced envelopes were mailed to government offices and news media, triggering even more fear in a country already shaken by Sept. 11. The anthrax investigation has baffled the government and turned up few leads.
Hours after Thursday’s raids, Berry, 46, was charged with assault for allegedly fighting with four family members at a seaside motel in New Jersey, authorities said. The family members required treatment at medical facilities.
“Apparently, there was a dispute over a cellphone, and it’s my understanding that there was a lot of stress from search warrants that were being conducted,” DePolo said.
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