Military veteran pleads guilty to illegal possession of ricin
Associated Press
A Marine Corps veteran who tried to fake his own death after a falling out with a Virginia-based militia group has pleaded guilty to illegal possession of ricin, a biological toxin. Forty-two-year-old Russell Vane of Vienna, Virginia, had been in jail since his arrest in April. At a plea hearing Wednesday in federal court, Vane admitted that he used castor beans to create ricin toxin at his home. Ricin is a toxin that occurs naturally in castor beans, and federal law requires anyone in possession of ricin to register and obtain a license. Vane came to authorities’ attention after online chatter that a militia group, the Virginia Kekoas, had severed ties with him.
