Long Lake Man Indicted for Mailing Suspicious White Powder to Dow Jones & Co.

A federal indictment filed in the District of Minnesota charges a 69-year-old Long Lake man with sending a suspicious white powder to Dow Jones & Co. after receiving unsolicited mail from the company. The indictment charges Richard Valentine Kozak with one count of false information and hoaxes, stating that it was his intent to convey false or misleading information regarding some type of biological weapon. The indictment was unsealed today, following Kozak’s initial appearance in federal court.

The indictment alleges that on May 10, 2010, Kozak mailed an obscene note and a quantity of white powder, later determined to be baking flour, to the Dow Jones & Co. mail facility in Massachusetts. Allegedly, his actions were in response to a magazine offer he had received from the company. His return note purportedly requested, among other things, that he be removed from the company’s mailing list.

When an employee at the company’s mail facility opened the note and discovered the powder, a portion of the facility was evacuated, and a local hazmat team was called in to determine if the powder represented an anthrax or other biological threat.

Since September 11, 2001, federal agencies have investigated and charged numerous individuals across the nation with biological-weapon hoaxes and threats. The public is encouraged to contact the FBI with any information regarding potential acts of this nature.

If convicted, Kozak faces a potential maximum penalty of five years in prison. All sentences will be determined by a federal district court judge.

This case is the result of an investigation by the FBI. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney John F. Docherty.

An indictment is a determination by a grand jury that there is probable cause to believe that offenses have been committed by a defendant. A defendant, of course, is presumed innocent until he or she pleads guilty or is proven guilty at trial.