Rick Sallinger reports from the CBS Denver affiliate
Less than two weeks before the Democratic National Convention a man has been found dead in a Denver hotel room with a container of what authorities initially suspect to be the deadly poison cyanide.
…the dead man, Saleman Abdirahman Dirie, 29, appears to be from outside the U.S. No passport was found on Dirie, who is believed to have entered the country from Canada.
A large container of a white powdery substance was found in the man’s room on the fourth floor of The Burnsley Hotel at 10th Avenue and Grant Street.
That particular hotel was the work of the Queen of Mean, Leona Helmsley, and has since been a boutique hotel in downtown Denver.
Tests are now being done by the Denver Police Crime Lab to determine exactly what the substance is.
It’s believed Dirie died from something other than the substance that was in the container.
The FBI and other governmental agencies, including the Joint Terrorism Task Force, are assisting in the probe. Hazardous materials assistance has included the Colorado State Patrol and the Colorado National Guard.“Our Joint Terrorism Task Force is involved in this simply because the victim here is from another country and it just kind of makes sense that our terrorism guys would take a look a look at this,” FBI Special Agent in Charge James Davis said…
“I don’t see how anybody could do anything but look into the possibility that this is a potential terrorist attack,” said Dr. Andrew Ternay, a Department of Defense contractor.
Ternay has worked with the Pentagon for 25 years. He’s published text books and written “The Language of Nightmares” which is a glossary of all things deadly, including cyanide.
“The very first thought that came to my mind was murder, or somebody who’s got to kill an awful lot of rodents because years ago cyanide used to be used to kill rats and roaches,” said Ternay. “A tablespoon would be enough to kill you. Less actually.”
Authorities said The Burnsley Hotel is safe and is open for business.
Cyanide was used by the Nazis to exterminate rats and human beings in the concentration camps throughout Europe in WWII. Cyanide was used by the recently executed mass-murderer Saddam Hussein. He used it to kill thousands of Kurdish children and their families.
CBD4 Medical Editor Dr. Dave Hnida said. “And put it in a little capsule, it is in fact used as a suicide pill just like you see in the movies.”
Officials said cyanide can be used as a terrorist weapon if it is dumped in water put in food, sprayed as a gas, or many other methods.