Ivins' off-hours time in the lab also raised suspicions. Just before the first set of anthrax letters was mailed, on Sept. 18, 2001, Ivins spent long hours at night in the lab containing the anthrax. And then again, before the second set of letters was mailed, on Oct. 9, he spent many night hours in the lab. He was alone during that time, officials said, suggesting he had the time to convert the anthrax into the deadly form that turned up in the letters.
When investigators asked Ivins about those extended hours, he offered "no legitimate reason," according to an affidavit, except that "home was not good" and he went to the lab "to escape."
Ivins "engaged in behavior and made a number of statements that suggest consciousness of guilt," Taylor said, including discarding a book on DNA coding while under round-the-clock surveillance. And in 2002, when investigators asked Ivins to provide a set of anthrax samples from the RMR-1029 flask, he provided a different set instead.
The correct sample was not provided until 2004.
Investigators also released e-mails yesterday that they said point to Ivins' guilt. On Sept. 26, 2001, Ivins wrote, "Bin Laden terrorists for sure have anthrax ... Osama Bin Laden has just decreed death to all Jews and all Americans." One of the anthrax mailings included the statement: "WE HAVE THIS ANTHRAX ... DEATH TO AMERICA ... DEATH TO ISRAEL."
The e-mails also chronicle Ivins' mental condition. Around the time of the attacks, he wrote a number of e-mails in which he seeks to understand his mental health issues. At one point, he writes that his psychiatrist and counselor believe he has a "Paranoid Personality Disorder" and he says that he has "incredible paranoid, delusional thoughts at times."
Ivins was also troubled during that time because an anthrax vaccine project on which he was working was failing, and he believed that success of the venture was important, the federal authorities said.
"One theory is that by launching these attacks, he creates a situation, a scenario where people realize they need to have this vaccine," Taylor said yesterday.
Officials also sought to explain why the anthrax letters - sent to the offices of Sens. Patrick J. Leahy and Tom Daschle as well as NBC News, The Washington Post and the Sun tabloid in Florida - were all mailed from Princeton, N.J. Ivins had a habit of traveling long distances to mail letters to disguise the sender, officials said.
