Vegas Ricin Hearing: Ricin Man Charged

An unemployed graphic designer who authorities believe was nearly killed by ricin was arrested Wednesday on federal charges that he possessed the deadly toxin as part of an "exotic idea," never carried out, to poison his enemies.

Roger Bergendorff, who authorities allege began making ricin a decade ago, was arrested upon his release from the hospital where he had been treated since Feb. 14.

He is charged with possession of a biological toxin and two weapons offenses stemming from materials authorities said were found Feb. 26 and Feb. 28 in his room at an extended-stay motel several blocks off the Las Vegas Strip.

Speaking from a wheelchair, Bergendorff told a federal judge in his initial court appearance that it was "not in my blood" to use the deadly poison.

"I didn't use that stuff," Bergendorff said as his court-appointed lawyer advised him not to say more, "because I couldn't."

The charges carry a possible penalty of 30 years in federal prison and a $750,000 fine. The judge ordered that Bergendorff, 57, remain in custody until a preliminary hearing May 2.

Prosecutors said in a six-page complaint that Bergendorff told investigators he first made ricin in San Diego in the late 1990s, and later made the substance while living in Reno and in the basement of his cousin's house in Riverton, Utah.

The complaint said that a June 2002 receipt for castor bean seed, purchased from a Michigan company, was found in an Utah storage locker rented by Bergendorff. The listed purchaser, "Roger's Patio and Garden," was apparently a fictitious business created by Bergendorff, the complaint said.

Cancer research is the only legal use for ricin, which has no antidote and can be lethal in amounts the size of the head of a pin.

Authorities do not allege Bergendorff's possession of ricin had anything to do with terrorism, according to court documents.