A dual citizen of France and Canada has pleaded guilty to mailing ricin to then-President Trump in 2020, according to federal prosecutors.
A woman with dual citizenship in France and Canada has pleaded guilty to sending homemade ricin to then-President Donald Trump in 2020, the U.S. Justice Department announced.
Pascale Ferrier, 55, mailed threatening letters to the White House containing ricin, a deadly poison, that she manufactured in her Quebec home, federal prosecutors announced Wednesday. In a Washington, D.C., federal court, Ferrier also pleaded guilty to mailing ricin-stuffed envelopes to eight Texas law enforcement officials.
In her letter to Trump, Ferrier called the ricin a "special gift" and wrote, “You ruin USA and lead them to disaster,” in blocked printing, according to a court exhibit. “I have US cousins, then I don’t want the next 4 with you as president," the letter said.
“The text of the letter referred to the President as an ‘Ugly Tyrant Clown,’ and instructed him to ‘(g)ive up and remove your application for this election,'" according to a court filing by prosecutors seeking the defendant’s detention. “The letter referred to the toxic ricin as a ‘Special Gift . . . for you (the President) to make a decision.’ The letter also contained threats. "'If it doesn’t work, I’ll find a better recipe for another poison, or I might use my gun when I’ll be able to come.'”
Ferrier is scheduled to be sentenced on April 26. Under the terms of her plea agreement, she could face at least 21 years in prison, the Justice Department said.
“There is no place for political violence in our country, and no excuse for threatening public officials or endangering our public servants,” District of Columbia U.S. Attorney Matthew Graves said in statement. “We hope this resolution will serve as a warning that using our mail system to send a toxic substance and other threats of this type will cost you your freedom for many years.”
After mailing the poison-laden envelopes, Ferrier drove to Peace Bridge Border Crossing in Buffalo on Sept. 20, 2020, where border patrol officials found her in possession of a loaded firearm, hundreds of rounds of ammunition and other weapons, the Justice Department said.
She had spent 10 weeks in a Hidalgo County, Texas, jail in 2019 on charges that were ultimately dismissed, and mailed similar letters to authorities she blamed for her incarceration, the Justice Department said.
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