Texas professor on trial in U.S. bioterror scare

[dArKeR]

A government scientist testified Friday that she was surprised when a Texas Tech University professor arrived at an agency facility with active plague cultures that could be infectious.

The professor, Thomas Butler, is on trial for causing a bioterrorism scare.

May Chu of the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention also said her agency had declined an invitation to work with Butler on a plague study he was doing with the Tanzanian government.

Butler, 62, caused a sensation in January when he reported that vials of the bacteria responsible for bubonic plague were missing. The report, coming amid public worry over biological attack, prompted the FBI to rush dozens of agents to this West Texas city. The FBI says Butler, a noted researcher, later admitted he had destroyed the vials accidentally.

Butler is on trial for multiple felony counts accusing him of smuggling plague bacteria from Tanzania, transporting it illegally, lying to federal agents and filing a false income tax return.

http://www.etaiwannews.com/World/2003/11/09/1068350701.htm