Writing in The Weekly Standard, David Tell asks, “Who Is Syed Athar Abbas? And what was he doing with a $100,000 ‘fine particulate mixer’ last summer?”
(Note: If you answered, “blending daiquiris,” you’re not half as funny as you think you are. Blunt of me to say, I realize. But so true.)
I am not so concerned with what one would do with a “ $100,000 ‘fine particulate mixer’ “ as much as I wonder WHY would anybody that could afford one have to operate it his/herself?
Well, like the article says, he didn’t. Nor did he really have the money (he scored it through a check kiting scheme, which is why he’s in jail at the moment).
The interesting thing is, nobody knows who has the mixer, which happens to be one of those few mixers capable of impregnating particles of one material with a fine coat of another… say, an anthrax spore with silica.
And Mr. Abbas won’t tell anyone where it is or who he sent it to, even if it could get him off the check kiting charge.
More than his life is worth, no doubt…
He won’t reveal who his buddies were, either.