Seattle gay bars receive ricin threats

SEATTLE, Jan. 7 (UPI) -- Police say they're taking seriously letters sent to 11 gay bars in Seattle that threatened ricin attacks.

Police seized the letters sent to the bars and the alternative weekly The Stranger for processing, and said it is coordinating the investigation with federal agencies, the Seattle Times reported Wednesday.

The anonymous letters said, "I have in my possession approximately 67 grams of ricin with which I will indiscriminately target at least five of your clients. ... I expect them to die painfully while in hospital." The letter to the newspaper said it should be "prepared to announce the deaths of approximately 55 individuals."

Police said they are treating the incident as a hate crime.

Ricin is a poison found in castor beans that can be deadly if purified, then ingested or inhaled.

Dan Giroux, a bartender at The Elite, which received one of the letters, said he read the contents through the envelope with a flashlight after being warned not to open it and found the experience "a little horrifying," the Times reported.

"I expect to feel safe at work. Being here is like being at your house. But this doesn't make you feel safe," he said.