After scrupulously ignoring the story for years, the media now is declaring "solved" the long-dormant anthrax attack investigation - after a "person of interest" in the mysterious 2001 case apparently committed suicide.

The overdose death of Fort Detrick researcher Bruce E. Ivins has brought back to life dim memories of the diabolical bio-weapon plot, in which anthrax-seeded letters were sent to Congressional leaders and media figures. Apparently, Ivins' death also has confirmed that he committed the act. According to the Washington Post:

"A federal grand jury was preparing to indict a Maryland bioweapons expert for his role in the 2001 anthrax attacks that killed five people and terrorized the country, according to two sources familiar with the investigation."

"Prosecutors were considering whether to seek the death penalty against Bruce E. Ivins, 62, who worked at an elite U.S. Army bioweapons laboratory in Fort Detrick. Ivins died Tuesday in an apparent suicide."

The Post, in a remarkable replay of its rush-to-judgment with an earlier suspect, has just about strapped Ivins to the execution gurney and jammed him with the pin; remember, there are only "reports" of an imminent indictment. To its credit, however, The Associated Press, is not so resolute:

"The Justice Department has not yet decided whether to close the investigation, officials said, meaning it's still not certain whether Ivins acted alone or had help. One official close to the case said that decision was expected within days. If the case is closed soon, one official said, that will indicate that Ivins was the lone suspect."

As long-time anthrax attack watcher Ed Lake notes: "Is that just an interpretation from reporters?  If the case is still open, a reporter might write such a statement even if the truth were that Ivins' role in the attacks was minor."

The mailings occurred only a few weeks after the horror of 9/11 had left the nation distraught and wary of further terror attacks. In addition to the five persons who died, several were hospitalized after coming in contact with the "weaponized" disease spores; the case disrupted postal services nationwide, and many public buildings including Congressional offices were shut down for testing.

Ivins, a Fort Detrick bio-weapons researcher, has not been promiently mentioned in previous coverage of the story, but his death apparently is enough to answer any and all questions surrounding this most enigmatic chapter of recent history. From the Los Angeles Times story, filed last night:

"The extraordinary turn of events followed the government's payment in June of a settlement valued at $5.82 million to a former government scientist, Steven J. Hatfill, who was long targeted as the FBI's chief suspect despite a lack of any evidence that he had ever possessed anthrax.

"The payout to Hatfill, a highly unusual development that all but exonerated him of committing the anthrax mailings, was an essential step to clear the way for prosecuting Ivins, according to lawyers familiar with the matter.

"Federal investigators moved away from Hatfill - for years the only publicly identified "person of interest" - and ultimately concluded that Ivins was the culprit after FBI Director Robert S. Mueller III changed leadership of the investigation in late 2006.

"The FBI's new top investigators - Vincent B. Lisi and Edward W. Montooth - instructed agents to re-examine leads or potential suspects that may have received insufficient attention. Moreover, significant progress was made in analyzing properties of the anthrax powder recovered from separate letters that were addressed to two U.S. senators."

Hatfill had been all-but convicted in the press for the attacks, with the Post's coverage leading the lynch mob; it was not a proud moment for the Fifth Estate. The leak of his name underwrote a close - too close - cooperation between government and media in the opening days of our "War of Terror" era. After it became clear the case against him was dodgy at best, virtually all media coverage of the investigation abruptly stopped.

Accounts of Ivins suicide imply he'd been under treatment for depression, but how long remains unclear. In any event, most stories confirm that he was getting the full Hatfill crucifixion treatment from the FBI. The Times story quotes a colleague of his this way:

"He didn't have any more money to spend on legal fees. He was much more emotionally labile, in terms of sensitivity to things, than most scientists. ... He was very thin skinned."

I'll bet a full-on FBI brace - complete with surly agents tossing the homestead and bum-rush interrogations - would make just about anyone "thin-skinned."

There are some very mysterious, very dark aspects to events that occured in late-summer, early-fall seven long years ago - and the anthrax attack case is one of the most screwy. At first glance, the letters seemed to point a finger at Iraq's Saddam Hussein, who's deep attraction to chemical/biological warfare was well-known as early as the 1980s. We had been told in the decade prior to 9/11 that he had an active anthrax weapons project cooking along, and the fatal letter attacks help lay the groundwork for the American invasion that would topple him 18 months later.

This must be pointed out: The attacks were suspiciously propitious for those campaigning for the Iraq War. As with any mysterious incident we must ask, "Cui bono?" - "Who benefits"?

As for the new developments, Lake points out: "I certainly hope that we learn more about the evidence in this case.  There is absolutely NOTHING about evidence in any of these news articles."

His site is at: http://www.anthraxinvestigation.com/#comments