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CNN Live Today

Anthrax Investigation Returns to Florida

Aired August 30, 2002 - 11:14   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: It was the springboard of the anthrax investigation, and now investigators are returning to the scene of one of the anthrax crimes, in Boca Raton, Florida, and that's where we find our CNN's Mark Potter -- Mark.
MARK POTTER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, good afternoon. After several days of preparations, the FBI agents and the government scientists have finally gone inside of American Media Incorporated building here in Boca Raton. They did that about a half-hour ago, and once again, they are going to be looking for anthrax spores.

They'll be there until this evening. Then they will through the holiday weekend and all of next week. We're looking at a scene right now. This is where they were preparing this. So you can't see very much. There are tents back there, but they were preparing themselves earlier today. They started at 8:00, and now they are inside the building.

The FBI can say that authorities have developed some new techniques for analyzing and for gathering large amounts of anthrax, and they hope to use those methods to finally find the source of anthrax here in the AMI building. The presumption is that it came in by way a letter, but a letter has not been found. This perimeter security is being taken care of by Boca Raton police chief, and we have the chief here, Andrew Scott.

Chief, thanks for your time.

CHIEF ANDREW SCOTT, BOCA RATON POLICE: My pleasure.

POTTER: I want to ask you first about any health concerns that might be about reopening this building. Is there anything for public nearby in this neighborhood worry about?

SCOTT No. We've been told time and again that there is no community health hazard that is going to be occurring at all with regards to the re-entry. That's been very reassuring to the public and the fact is that the building has been contained for the last 10 months by the Boca Raton Police Department, as far as security, and the perimeter security, in conjunction with AMI has also provided security.

So we've been diligent for maintaining this building as pure a crime scene, with no to little entry inside the building.

POTTER: Right, now how do people here in Boca Raton feel about this. The agents were here in October, and then they went away, and now they're back 10 months later. Is there some concern or anger about that?

SCOTT: Well, it's interesting, the public hasn't necessarily revealed any type of consternation or anger, although when it first occurred, obviously the Boca Raton Police Department and city hall received significant calls related to health issues, suspicious packages and what have you.

Now that it's gone away and we're back into this now with the re- entry, the public has been relatively mild mannered. I have not received any particular calls from the media, nor has the mayor's office. So for the general public, it's been a non-issue.

But politically, with regards to it languishing for the last 10 months, and that there's been very little interest from the legislatures, the federal legislatures on, who is going to take care of this building, what's going to become of it, and that the owner is still stuck with maintaining its perimeter security, maintaining the maintaining the maintenance and the what have you, that we've had little, I'd say, political interest inside what's happening with this building. So that's been the only frustration that we've had.

POTTER: Now what happened here when anthrax was discovered afterward in Washington and in New York. Well, what had happened, as soon as the anthrax was located in New York, and obviously, in Washington, it seemed like the Boca Raton incident, the AMI incident, was a non-incident. In fact, all of media crew left, rightfully so, I would understand.

But as far as any other jurisdiction, law enforcement jurisdiction, and or other legislative or political interests, there was none, and all of that was focused and continues to be focused up in Washington, and much to the chagrin to the mayor and myself, because frankly, we were the first bioterrorist attack. Does that mean anything? Well, there is significance, but the fact is that we're still languishing at this building, and so is the owner of the building.

And then, you know what, the public still has some concern, and then there's a grander picture of Boca Raton, not so much with the general public here in the city, but internationally and nationally as a destination of choice, and here, we still have problem with the anthrax.

POTTER: And there back again in the building.

Keith, thank you very much for your time. I appreciate that.

This -- as we said, the agents are in the building. This is being done quietly, and with some great degree of secrecy. If the agents find something, we're not actually sure that the public and we will be notified. That appears to be the way things are going right now. We're not getting much information from the federal authorities who are conducting this search.

Back to you.

WHITFIELD: All right. Thanks, Mark.

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