FBI Combs Home of Man Arrested in Anthrax Scare

FBI agents searched the home of a researcher again Sunday, although the man was released from jail after tests showed he possessed a harmless animal vaccine, not a biological weapon.

More than a dozen agents descended on William Leavitt Jr.’s property in this small farming community 50 miles northeast of Las Vegas. Neighbors said the agents had been searching the home and an adjacent shed since Wednesday, when Leavitt was arrested along with Larry Wayne Harris.

Leavitt’s lawyer, Lamond Mills, called the search “a fishing expedition” and said he planned to visit the home to “see what kind of shape the house is in and what they’ve taken.”

“I think they’re embarrassed, and I think they’re looking for anything they can find to bring charges against Bill Leavitt,” said Leavitt’s lawyer, Lamond Mills.

FBI agents at the scene declined to comment.

The search came on the eve of today’s detention hearing for Harris, who remained jailed over the weekend on biological weapon charges.

A government lab Sunday was still testing material seized from Harris’ Ohio home to determine if it is a dangerous--and illegal--biological agent, federal sources have said.

The FBI says its investigation into both men is continuing, though authorities announced Saturday that a substance once feared to be the ingredients of a biological weapon turned out to be a harmless anthrax vaccine.

The material was seized from Leavitt and Harris on Wednesday in Henderson, Nev., just outside Las Vegas, triggering a nationwide scare. They were arrested on charges of possessing a biological agent for use as a weapon.

Leavitt was released from jail Saturday night.

Leavitt, a former Mormon bishop, said Sunday he would fast and pray until his name was cleared.

He said in a telephone interview that he had begun a juice-and-water fast and was concerned that national media coverage of his case could harm the reputation of the Mormon church.