Chemical Agents of Opportunity for Terrorism: TICs & TIMs

Chemical Agents of Opportunity for Terrorism
Training Support Package
Participant Guide
Slide 58
Chemical Agents of Opportunity for Terrorism:
TICs & TIMs
Ricin Poisoning
Module One – Toxic Warfare: Looking Beyond Conventional Chemical Weapons
58
In fact on autopsy a tiny metallic sphere was retrieved from his posterior thigh. Pictured
above, the sphere was ingeniously introduced through the tip of a specialized umbrella
designed to implant such a metallic object. It was only later when there was a 2 nd case,
that the mystery was solved and it became apparent the this dissident Bulgarian
journalist (Georgi Markov) had died after have been injected with the metallic sphere
which contained… ricin…derived from the castor bean plant.
The modified umbrella is on the left. The metallic object with two tiny holes drilled
through it, with a total volume of 0.2 microliters. The plant on the right is Ricinus
communis, or the Castor Bean plant. The seeds come from the reddish pods, which are
found in the autumn.
December 2008 Version 2.0 Page 63