Engineer Convicted of Making Deadly Poison
Jurors convicted a computer engineer of making and possessing ricin, a deadly poison the government considers a biological weapon.
The federal jury in Spokane deliberated for about two hours before finding Kenneth Olsen guilty of the two counts. Each count carries a maximum penalty of life in prison and a $250,000 fine.
Olsen, 49, did not display any emotion as the verdict was read.
During closing arguments, Assistant U.S. Atty. Stephanie Whitaker told the jury that logs of Web sites showed Olsen had meticulously researched undetectable poisons, and kept coming back to ricin.
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