Anthrax-tainted letter opened after two week delay

Scientists have finally opened the anthrax-laced letter sent to US Senator Patrick Leahy.

The opening was delayed for more than two weeks while technicians worked out a method to retrieve all the anthrax inside.

It was thought an electrostatic charge would develop as the envelope was opened, sending anthrax spores flying out of the envelope.

An FBI official commented: "Testing will not be completed in the next few days. We expect it to be weeks before all the results of testing are in."

A government lawyer added that some of the anthrax from a letter to Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle "literally jumped off the slide" as lab technicians tried to examine it under a microscope.

The suspected anthrax powder will be sent to various labs for analysis.

The letter itself must be decontaminated and irradiated before it can be tested for fingerprints, DNA and fibres.

The Leahy envelope was found by government investigators among mail that had been quarantined after the discovery of anthrax in the letter to Tom Daschle.