Behind the Bastards

How The FBI Botched the 2001 Anthrax Scare (Part 2)

October 7, 2025

Key Takeaways Copied to clipboard!

  • The intense national paranoia following 9/11 created an environment where the subsequent anthrax attacks were immediately assumed to be related to Islamic terrorism, despite early evidence pointing toward a domestic bioweapons insider. 
  • The identification of the anthrax as the highly lethal Ames strain significantly narrowed the suspect pool to a small number of highly skilled American bioweapons scientists, a fact the FBI initially struggled to prioritize due to their focus on the 9/11 narrative. 
  • The FBI's investigation, led by agents inexperienced in bioweapons science and under immense public pressure for a win, fixated on questionable forensic evidence like handwriting while simultaneously destroying the career of Stephen Hatfield through leaks and premature public suspicion. 
  • The FBI employed aggressive and unethical surveillance tactics, including 'bumper locking,' against Stephen Hatfield, leading to the collapse of his career and personal life despite a lack of evidence linking him to the 2001 anthrax attacks. 
  • Attorney General John Ashcroft publicly named Stephen Hatfield a person of interest in August 2002, an unprecedented move that amplified the harassment and reputational damage against an uncharged citizen. 
  • The investigation eventually shifted to Bruce Edward Ivins, an anthrax expert who later died by suicide, but the FBI's case against him is scientifically questionable, suggesting the entire investigation was severely botched from the start, as evidenced by the new team accepting Hatfield's innocence in 2007. 

Segments

Anthrax Victim and Context
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(00:07:11)
  • Key Takeaway: Robert Stevens, a photo editor for the National Enquirer, was the first victim of inhalation anthrax, an extremely rare illness in the US, shortly after 9/11.
  • Summary: Robert Stevens, a 60-year-old British-born image editor for the National Enquirer, became ill on September 30, 2001, and was later diagnosed with inhalation anthrax. This form of anthrax is exceptionally rare, with Stevens being only the 19th documented case in the US over 100 years. His illness, occurring immediately after 9/11, led doctors to immediately suspect terrorism.
Anthrax Letters Emerge
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(00:12:25)
  • Key Takeaway: The discovery of an anthrax letter addressed to Senator Tom Daschle, mailed from a return address in New Jersey, confirmed the attacks were intentional and targeted political and media figures.
  • Summary: The FBI became involved after two people at the American Media building, including Robert Stevens, contracted anthrax. On October 15, 2001, a letter containing anthrax spores addressed to Senator Tom Daschle was found, leading to the evacuation of the Hart Senate building for six months. Subsequent letters targeted major news outlets like NBC, CBS, and ABC, escalating the panic into an unprecedented biological attack.
Ames Strain Identification
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(00:15:37)
  • Key Takeaway: Analysis of the anthrax spores revealed they were the Ames strain, a highly lethal variant typically researched and weaponized by USAMRID, shifting suspicion away from Al-Qaeda toward a domestic bioweapons insider.
  • Summary: Scientists analyzing the anthrax determined it was the Ames strain, which was cultured and weaponized (turned into a dry powder) by USAMRID for defensive research purposes. This specific strain strongly suggested the culprit possessed specialized knowledge and access to US bioweapons research facilities, contradicting the initial assumption that Al-Qaeda was responsible.
FBI Investigation Flaws
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(00:22:29)
  • Key Takeaway: The FBI, led by Robert Mueller and focused on organized crime tactics under Van Harp, resisted accepting the bioweapons insider theory and wasted time pursuing ineffective forensic leads like handwriting analysis.
  • Summary: The FBI’s Washington Field Office, which was also handling the 9/11 investigation, lacked sufficient scientific expertise, with only eight PhD scientists on the team. Assistant Director Van Harp, whose background was in organized crime, became obsessed with the handwriting on the letters, leading to a two-month, fruitless computer sting operation based on questionable forensic science.
Stephen Hatfield Becomes Suspect
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(00:39:01)
  • Key Takeaway: Based on the profile of an angry, middle-aged white man with scientific background, Stephen Hatfield’s recent grievances with the CIA and his job designing dispersal devices made him the FBI’s primary suspect.
  • Summary: Investigators developed a profile matching a scientist angry at the government, which pointed toward Stephen Hatfield, who had recently been denied a security clearance by the CIA. His job involved designing theoretical bioweapon dispersal devices, making him one of the few people technically capable of executing the attack, thus cementing him as the focus of the investigation.
Citizen Investigator Interference
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(00:47:14)
  • Key Takeaway: Bioweapons expert Barbara Rosenberg, believing the FBI was moving too slowly, published detailed descriptions of the likely suspect—Stephen Hatfield—on public forums, leading directly to the highly publicized raid on his apartment.
  • Summary: Barbara Rosenberg, a biological arms control expert, began publishing memos detailing the profile of the culprit, strongly implying Stephen Hatfield without naming him publicly at first. After meeting with the Senate Judiciary Committee, she published a memo describing him in detail, which Hatfield believed directly led to the FBI raiding his home on June 25, 2002, despite lacking concrete evidence.
Media and Career Destruction
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(00:51:32)
  • Key Takeaway: Nicholas Kristof of The New York Times publicly named Stephen Hatfield and accused him of genocide involvement in Zimbabwe, demonstrating how media pressure amplified the FBI’s flawed focus to destroy Hatfield’s career.
  • Summary: Following the raid, Nicholas Kristof named Hatfield in columns, citing confidential FBI sources and alleging that Hatfield avoided arrest only because he was white, not Arab. Kristof also linked Hatfield to the 1970s Rhodesian anthrax outbreak, despite Hatfield being too young and unqualified at the time to have been involved in weaponization. As a result of the scrutiny, Hatfield lost his job at SAIC and a subsequent job offer from LSU was rescinded by the DOJ.
Hatfield’s Job Loss and DOJ Interference
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(00:56:11)
  • Key Takeaway: The DOJ actively intervened to block Stephen Hatfield’s subsequent employment, ordering LSU to cease using him for a federally funded program.
  • Summary: Hatfield quickly secured a job training first responders at Louisiana State University after losing his position at SAIC. Because the LSU program was funded by a DOJ grant, the DOJ ordered LSU to fire him, rescinding the job offer. This action demonstrated the DOJ’s intent to blacklist Hatfield without any conviction.
FBI Bumper Locking Tactics Explained
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(01:00:37)
  • Key Takeaway: The FBI utilized ‘bumper locking,’ a tactic involving obvious, 24/7 physical surveillance designed to provoke a suspect into making a driving error for a petty arrest.
  • Summary: Hatfield experienced FBI agents videotaping him after a job interview, illustrating the tactic known as bumper locking. This method involves overt surveillance intended to force the subject to slip up, allowing agents to search them or charge them with minor offenses. An FBI agent confirmed this intense surveillance went on for months because management was convinced Hatfield was the perpetrator.
Harassment and Arrest Incidents
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(01:01:49)
  • Key Takeaway: Hatfield was subjected to repeated traffic stops by local law enforcement, culminating in an arrest for a turn signal violation after consuming a single drink.
  • Summary: Hatfield alleged local police, likely at the FBI’s direction, harassed him, including two stops for turn signal issues in one night. During the second stop, he was arrested after admitting to one drink, and authorities refused to let him take a sobriety test. This relentless pressure contributed to Hatfield beginning to drink more heavily as the ordeal continued.
Social Isolation and Second Raid
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(01:02:46)
  • Key Takeaway: Hatfield’s professional colleagues distanced themselves to protect their own careers, leaving him socially isolated except for a few staunch supporters.
  • Summary: Due to the terrorism suspicion, Hatfield lost his entire social circle within the small bioterrorism research community as colleagues detached from him. Colleague Jim Klein stayed by him, fearing Hatfield would commit suicide under the world’s pressure. Five weeks after the first raid, the FBI searched Hatfield’s house a second time, where a dog allegedly identified him as the anthrax killer.
Ashcroft Names Hatfield Publicly
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(01:04:42)
  • Key Takeaway: Attorney General John Ashcroft publicly named Stephen Hatfield a person of interest in August 2002, despite the FBI finding no evidence linking him to the crime.
  • Summary: By August 2002, after extensive raids and finding no evidence, the FBI continued its focus on Hatfield. Ashcroft made the unprecedented move of naming Hatfield publicly, effectively telling the nation to target him. This led to further surveillance, including phone tapping, and FBI agents leaking embarrassing information about Hatfield to the media.
FBI Raids and Lawsuit Preparation
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(01:04:00)
  • Key Takeaway: The FBI escalated raids to include Hatfield’s storage locker and his father’s farm, while his girlfriend’s home was also searched and she was told he murdered five people.
  • Summary: Raids continued on Hatfield’s property, including his storage locker and his father’s farm, and his girlfriend’s townhouse. The girlfriend reported agents told her Hatfield murdered five people while tearing through her home. Hatfield responded to the pressure by hiring an attorney to sue the federal government, beginning that process in August 2003.
Pond Search for Evidence
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(01:09:53)
  • Key Takeaway: The FBI conducted an extensive, costly search of frozen ponds based on a tip that Hatfield hypothetically discussed disposing of anthrax-contaminated materials in water.
  • Summary: Acting on a tip that Hatfield discussed disposing of contaminated materials in water, agents sealed off roads and used divers in a frozen forest network. Divers pulled up numerous items, including a plastic box described by news reports as a ‘scientific plexiglass glove box.’ The hosts humorously suggest this item was likely a turtle trap, highlighting the absurdity of the search.
FBI Runs Over Foot, Hatfield Injured
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(01:11:22)
  • Key Takeaway: FBI agents, while bumper-locking Hatfield, ran a red light in a school zone, ran over his foot, and then Washington police ticketed the injured Hatfield for ‘walking to create a hazard.’
  • Summary: In spring 2003, FBI agents following Hatfield ran a red light in a school zone and subsequently ran over his foot while driving away. Because he lacked insurance or savings, Hatfield declined an ambulance ride to the hospital. Local police then arrived and ticketed him for walking unsafely, demonstrating the complete focus of the security state on harassing him.
Investigation Ebb and Ivins Focus
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(01:12:24)
  • Key Takeaway: After two years without leads, the FBI’s focus on Hatfield waned, and they later shifted intense scrutiny onto Bruce Edward Ivins, an anthrax expert who committed suicide.
  • Summary: By 2004, the investigation efforts against Hatfield began to slow, and he eventually resumed some normal activities, including medical relief work in Sri Lanka in 2005. In 2007, a new FBI team took over, accepting Hatfield’s innocence, and they eventually focused on Bruce Edward Ivins, a microbiologist specializing in anthrax. Ivins lost his job and killed himself in 2008 after the FBI intensified pressure on him.
Scientific Doubt on Ivins Conclusion
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(01:17:18)
  • Key Takeaway: The National Academy of Science determined that the FBI’s core evidence—the ability to trace the anthrax strain back to Ivins’ specific jar—is scientifically impossible.
  • Summary: The FBI concluded Ivins was the perpetrator, claiming they traced the specific AIM strain to his lab sample, which they suggested motivated him due to budget cuts. However, the National Academy of Science later stated it is physically impossible to trace the anthrax origin with the certainty the FBI claimed. This casts significant doubt on the FBI’s final conclusion, suggesting the investigation was botched to the point that the true culprit may never be known.