A former Navy sailor has reportedly sent the two suspicious packages found in a Pentagon mailroom on Tuesday, a Fox News report claims.

Investigators told Fox that one of two envelopes, addressed to Defense Secretary James Mattis and top Navy officer Admiral John Richardson, initially tested positive for ricin contamination.

A return address on one of the envelopes pointed investigators towards the sailor, whose name has not yet been released.

The packages never actually made it into the Pentagon, but were intercepted at a remote mailroom in an adjacent building, after a tip from the White House. All mail to the Pentagon has been put under quarantine following the incident.

Similar packages were discovered on Tuesday at the Texas office of Senator Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and at the White House, addressed to President Donald Trump. The Texas package was found to be safe, while law enforcement officials have not yet confirmed whether the package addressed to Trump contained ricin or any other poison.

Ricin is a highly toxic substance extracted from castor beans, and has figured prominently as a bioweapon in a number of foiled terrorist plots.

The most recent incident involving ricin-laced mail in Washington, DC was in April 2013, when a Mississippi man mailed envelopes with the toxin to Senator Roger Wicker (R-Mississippi) and President Barack Obama.

The Pentagon’s remote mail facility was set up after the 9/11 terrorist attacks and the subsequent anthrax scare, to ensure that letters and packages can be screened for dangerous substances before they enter the Defense Department’s headquarters.

https://www.rt.com/usa/440234-navy-sailor-pentagon-ricin/