BOCA RATON, Florida -- The FBI is investigating the possibility that the anthrax bacteria detected in two Florida men is a result of terrorism or criminal action, Attorney General John Ashcroft said Monday.
The bacteria that killed a man last week has been detected in the nose of a co-worker and on a computer keyboard in the newspaper office where both men worked, health officials said.
"We regard this as an investigation that could become a clear criminal investigation, and we are pursuing this with all the dispatch and care that's appropriate," Ashcroft said.
Asked if it was a terrorist-related investigation, he said: "We don't have enough information to know whether this could be related to terrorism or not." He said the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention was providing expertise.
