an
Iranian-American chemist has been found guilty in Missouri of possession of a highly toxic chemical in sufficient quantity to kill hundreds of people.
When the case finally went to the jury, it took jurors only two hours to find him guilty in federal court in Independence, Missouri.
Hessam S. Ghane, 60, was arrested in May 2003 and underwent court-ordered mental evaluation and treatment for two years.
At a court hearing in 2003, psychiatrist Howard Houghton testified that he called police after Ghane threatened to attack government agencies and some individuals, saying, “You know I have access to chemicals and I know chemistry.” Houghton said he diagnosed Ghane with suicidal depression and paranoia.
An FBI agent testified Ghane had no known ties to any terrorist organization and appeared to be operating on his own.
Ghane started taking anti-psychotic drugs voluntarily after his arrest and Judge Robert Larsen of the federal district court in Kansas City, Missouri, reported in 2005, “During his treatment period, he was able to put aside his belief of governmental persecution and discuss his defense against the criminal charges against him realistically.”
The indictment said Ghane was arrested for possession of 177 grams of 75 percent pure potassium cyanide, which can be fatal if inhaled, swallowed or just absorbed through the skin. Potassium cyanide is a controlled substance under US law and under the international Chemical Weapons Convention.
Ghane is a naturalized American and Ph.D. who worked for the US Army Corps of Engineers until he was fired in 1993 after he threatened to blow up a federal office building and attack a co-worker. Over the years, he filed at least 19 lawsuits against federal officials, but lost them all.
On February 4, 2003, he was taken to a hospital when he telephoned a suicide hotline. He told an emergency room physician about the chemical. The next day, police searched his apartment and found the potassium cyanide under the kitchen sink.
He pleaded innocent to the charge of illegal possession of a controlled chemical. A sentencing date has not yet been set.