Charges have been dropped against a Mississippi man charged with sending ricin-laced poison letters to President Barack Obama, a U.S. senator and a state judge after his lawyer argued that he has been framed by a former friend.
'I've never heard of ricin or whatever. I thought they said rice. I told them I don't eat rice,' Kevin Curtis said at a press conference today, describing the moment he was questioned by federal authorities.
Defense lawyer Christi McCoy said whoever framed her client was able to lead the FBI to his door simply by including Curtis' catch-phrase 'I'm KC and I approve this message' and a few other clues in the threatening notes that were mailed to Washington.
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Sweet relief: Paul Kevin Curtis, who had been in custody under suspicion of sending ricin-laced letters to President Obama and others, left, hugs his attorney Christi McCoy during a news conference following his release Tuesday
Emotional: Curtis said at the news conference: 'I'd never heard of ricin. I thought they said rice'
Charges dropped against Ricin letter suspect
McCoy suggested in court on Monday that federal authorities should instead investigate J. Everett Dutschke, an accused child molester who unsuccessfully ran for a Mississippi state House seat against the son of one of the ricin targets.
McCoy said Dutschke recently had a falling out with Curtis after an argument over email. Dutschke and Curtis' brother are former business partners.
On Tuesday local police and federal agents searched Dutschke home and asked him to take a lie detector test. Dutschke has denied any involvement in the threats and has not been accused of wrongdoing by authorities.
McCoy told CNN this afternoon that federal agents have not recovered any physical evidence tying Curtis to the poisoned letters.
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'Kevin Curtis is absolutely 100 per cent innocent,' McCoy told CNN today.
She added: 'He's been through sheer hell.'
On Tuesday afternoon, six days after Curtis was arrested, the U.S. Attorney dropped terrorism charges against him. He had been accused of sending letters laces with the deadly poison ricin to the offices of Obama, Mississippi Senator Roger Wicker and Lee County Judge Sadie Holland.
'I respect President Obama. I love my country and would never do anything to pose a threat to him or any other U.S. official,' Curtis said Tuesday.
McCoy suggested in federal court on Monday that Dutschke is one of the men who the FBI should investigate in the ricin case.
'Framed': Kevin Curtis, who works as an Elvis impersonator, may have been set up by a man who was once his brother's business partner, his lawyer says
Accused: J Everett Dutschke, right, had his home raided by federal agents on Tuesday after Curtis lawyer alleged he might be behind the ricin attack. He is seen here with Senator Roger Wicker
Denial: Dutschke has said he had nothing to do with the ricin attacks and is a 'patriotic American'
Dutschke, she said, is a former friend of Curtis and that the two had a falling out over a book Curtis wrote called 'Missing Pieces.'
On Friday afternoon ten local officers and federal agents raided Dutschke's house in Tupelo and searched it. Dutschke denied any involvement in the ricin case on Tuesday.
'I'm a patriotic American. I don't have any grudges against anybody. I did not send the letters,' Dutschke said.
He said he was asked to take a lie detector and that police had previously questioned him as well.
Dutschke and Curtis are both musicians, are both politically active and are both heavily interested in martial arts.
Dutske was arrested early this year and charged with molesting three girls - including a teenager he 'touched' between 2007 and 2011, an eight-year-old girl and a seven-year-old girl.
He has not yet stood trial for the charges and is free after posting $25,000 bail.
Musician: Kevin Curtis works as an Elvis impersonator and performs music for a living. He once performed for Senator Roger Wicker, one of the politicians who received ricin in the mail
Elvis impersonator Kevin Curtis freed
Found nothing: Curtis' lawyer said that despite extensive searches of his home, federal agents did not recover any physical evidence linking Curtis to the ricin letters
McCoy said that whoever framed her client dropped obvious clues that led federal investigators to arrest Curtis.
Curtis made several posts on Facebook about the 'organ donation industry.' He signed each of his posts with the phrase 'I'm KC and I approve this message.'
He also authored a book on organ donation called 'Missing Pieces.' The poison-laced notes included a reference to the book, as well.
A day earlier, FBI Agent Brandon Grant testified searches on Friday of Curtis' vehicle and house in Corinth, Mississippi, found no ricin, ingredients for the poison, or devices used to make it. A search of Curtis' computers found no evidence he researched making ricin.
'There was no apparent ricin, castor beans or any material there that could be used for the manufacturing, like a blender or something,' Grant testified. He speculated that Curtis could have thrown away the processor.
McCoy believes the only explanation is that somebody else set her client up.
'It's horrific that somebody would do this, but yes, I believe that's what happened,' McCoy said.
Still, Grant testified that authorities believed they have the right suspect.
'Given the right mindset and the Internet and the acquisition of material, other people could be involved. However, given information right now, we believe we have the right individual,' he said.
Suspect: The FBI has arrested a suspect accused of sending letters laced with ricin to President Obama, pictured on Wednesday, and a Mississippi senator
Hound dog: Curtis posted hordes of pictures on his Myspace page showing him from the 1980s and 90s
Grant said lab analysis shows the poison in the letters was in a crude form that could have been created by grinding castor beans in a food processor or coffee grinder.
Grant testified Friday that authorities tried to track down the sender of the letters by using a list of Wicker's constituents with the initials KC, the same initials in the letters.
Grant said the list was whittled from thousands to about 100 when investigators isolated the ones who lived in an area that would have a Memphis, Tennessee, postmark, which includes many places in north Mississippi. He said Wicker's staff recognized Curtis as someone who had written the senator before.
All the envelopes and stamps were self-adhesive, Grant said Monday, meaning they won't yield DNA evidence. He said thus far the envelopes and letters haven't yielded any fingerprints.