PORTLAND, Ore. -- Federal authorities want to extradite the fiery personal secretary of the late Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh and charge her with plotting to kill a federal prosecutor, a published report said Tuesday.
The Oregonian newspaper said it has learned prosecutors are preparing a new criminal case against the woman, Ma Anand Sheela, who has been living in Germany since her release from a federal prison in California.
U.S. Attorney Charles Turner declined comment on the report that he was a target of the murder plot and the newspaper did not identify its sources.
Sheela served 29 months in prison for crimes committed while followers of the late Indian guru lived on a former Oregon cattle ranch in the early 1980s. She pleaded guilty to immigration fraud, attempted murder, arson and poisoning 750 residents of The Dalles, Ore., by infecting restaurant salad bars with salmonella bacteria.
At the time of her arrest, authorities revealed through court documents they knew of a plot by Sheela to have a band of women waylay Turner on his way home from work in Portland and kill him with pistols. The plot was never carried out and Sheela was never prosecuted for it.
The newspaper said it's sources would not reveal why the investigation was being reopened.
Informants told the FBI in 1985 that Sheela wanted to assassinate Turner to slow his investigation of alleged crimes at the guru's commune in Oregon's Wasco County. But at about the time the plot was to be carried out, Sheela was ousted from power and forced to leave the commune.
Rajneeshpuram, as the commune was known, quickly unraveled. Turner's investigation resulted in immigration fraud charges against Rajneesh, who pleaded guilty, paid a $400,000 fine and left the country. The guru died Jan. 19 in Puna, India, reportedly of heart failure.
Sheela managed Rajneesh's affairs when he moved to Oregon. She arranged the purchase of the former Big Muddy cattle ranch and organized a Rajneesh community there. She clashed with local residents, frequently carried a pistol and was known for her often foul-mouthed denunciations of Oregon authorities.
According to information revealed in 1985, FBI informants said Sheela recruited four close associates to form an all-woman hit squad to kill Turner.
Sheela led the women to New York where they obtained false indentity documents. From there, they allegedly flew to Texas and bought five pistols. They then returned to Portland and rented an apartment to use as a base for the assassination plot.
The informant said the women decided to intercept Turner near his home. One woman was to feign car trouble to get him to stop, and the others were to rush up and shoot him.
Scuba divers spent two days seaching lakes on Rancho Rajneesh looking for the guns, but found nothing.
The informants also revealed that Sheela had made plans to kill Oregon Attorney General Dave Frohnmayer, who was investigating possible violations of state crimes at Rancho Rajneesh.
Frohnmayer, who is running for governor, has mentioned the plot in his campaign advertising.
