Police: Terrorism not linked to ricin find

LAS VEGAS, March 1 (UPI) -- Police do not suspect terroristic motives in the discovery of several bottles of the toxin ricin in a Las Vegas hotel room, it was reported Saturday.

Las Vegas police were discounting any terrorism links in Thursday's discovery despite guns and literature about anarchy being found at the scene, the Las Vegas Review-Journal reported.

"I want to assure everybody that the Las Vegas Valley is safe," Las Vegas police Capt. Joseph Lombardo said. "We don't currently have any terrorist threat at this time or possibility of contamination (due) to ricin."

Police were initially drawn to the hotel room when a 57-year-old man staying in the suite placed an emergency call.

The man, identified by the Review-Journal as Roger Von Bergendorff, said he was in need of medical help due to respiratory problems. The newspaper said the man has remained in critical condition since making the call more than two weeks ago.

Seven other people have been hospitalized as a precaution while investigators look further into the ricin discovery, the Review-Journal reported.

A pinhead-sized amount of Ricin, a toxin extracted from the castor bean, can kill an adult, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control.