Lauren Wood/Reuters

Everett Dutschke speaks to the media as federal officials search his property in Tupelo, Mississippi, on April 23.

The FBI found traces of ricin in the former studio of a Mississippi martial arts instructor accused of sending poisoned letters to President Obama and other officials, and on a dust mask he chucked in a trash bin while agents were watching him, court documents show.

An affidavit unsealed Tuesday also revealed that the suspect, James Everett Dutschke, ordered castor beans -- which are used to make ricin – on eBay last November and December.

Other evidence outlined in the documents include documents from Dutschke’s home that appear to come from the same printer as the ricin-laced letters, computer records that show ricin-related downloads and text messages with his wife about “burning” and disposing of paperwork.

Dutschke, 41, is being held without bond in the case – which originally focused on an Elvis impersonator with whom he’s been feuding for years.

That man, Paul Kevin Curtis, was arrested two weeks ago but charges were later dropped. He has said he believes he was framed by Dutschke.

A surveillance team was watching Dutschke when he entered his former dojo, Tupelo Taekwondo Plus, on April 22, removed a bunch of things and tossed them into a garbage bin on the street, the affidavit said.

Authorities retrieved the items: a coffee grinder they said could be used for processing castor beans, latex gloves and a dust mask. The mask tested positive for ricin, as did swabs from the dojo, investigators said.

“Because public safety is always the FBI's first priority in any investigation, that location was immediately sealed off and appropriate public health authorities were notified,” the FBI said in a statement.

Ricin can be lethal, but an FBI agent testified in court that the variety found in the letters sent to Obama, Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., and Judge Sadie Holland of Lee County, Miss. Wasn’t very potent.

Dutschke, 41, has denied being the culprit.

“I wouldn’t recognize ricin if I saw it,” he told reporters last week. “Would you?”

The FBI said that when they interviewed Dutschke, he denied ever buying castor beans, said he had not been back to his dojo and never threw away anything from the studio.

When he was confronted with evidence to the contrary, “Dutschke attempted to change the subject, and he ended the interview,” the affidavit said.

This story was originally published on Tue Apr 30, 2013 5:23 PM EDT

A judge declined to set bond Monday for a Mississippi martial arts instructor charged with sending poisoned letters to President Barack Obama and other government officials.

Prosecutors said they believed James Everett Dutschke was dangerous and a flight risk, according to NBC affiliate WTVA.

Dutschke was arrested Saturday morning at his home in Tupelo and charged with attempted use of a biological weapon — the poison ricin, which authorities say turned up in letters to the president, a senator and a Mississippi judge.

The arrest was the latest bizarre twist in the case. Authorities first arrested another man, an Elvis impersonator named Paul Kevin Curtis, who frequently writes to Congress and who has a longstanding feud with Dutschke. Charges against Curtis were dropped.

Curtis says he was framed. He has said Dutschke snubbed him after showing interest in publishing his book on a black market for body parts. Curtis also acknowledged posting a fake Mensa certificate online as part of a trap he set for Dutschke.

Law enforcement officials said they found traces of ricin after searching Dutschke’s home, business and cars. Dutschke has said that he is a patriotic American, holds no grudges and didn’t do it.

“I wouldn’t recognize ricin if I saw it,” he told reporters last week. “Would you?”

Dutschke, 41, who earlier this month pledged not guilty to two child molestation charges, faces life in prison if he is convicted on the ricin charge.

Bert Mohr / AP

Paul Kevin Curtis speaks to reporters last week in Oxford, Miss.

Besides Obama, the ricin letters were sent to Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., and to Judge Sadie Holland of Lee County, Miss. The letters to Obama and Wicker were intercepted at screening facilities. Holland’s letter reached her, but she was unharmed.

“Boy, I must be important,” she joked to The Clarion-Ledger newspaper of Jackson. “I’m right up there with the president and Senator Wicker, huh?”

Ricin is made from castor beans and can kill, but an FBI agent testified in court that the ricin in the letters was crude and not very potent, and looked like castor beans ground in a blender.

The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.

This story was originally published on Mon Apr 29, 2013 9:05 AM EDT

Rivers including the Mississippi and Illinois are expected to remain in “major flood stage” through this weekend, the National Weather Service warned as rain and snow continued to fall on much of the central U.S. Tuesday.

A number of flood warnings were in place as ongoing rain and runoff from last week’s intense downpours continued to keep the water levels high in rivers across Illinois, Missouri, Iowa, Indiana and Michigan in particular, the NWS added.

“The larger rivers, such as the Mississippi and Illinois Rivers, will take longer to recede and will remain in major flood stage through this weekend,” the weather service said.

Full coverage from weather.com

“Do not drive through flowing water. Nearly half of all flood fatalities are vehicle related. As little as 6 inches of water may cause you to lose control of your vehicle. Two feet of water will carry most vehicles away,” it added in a flood warning for several rivers in Missouri.

More snow
There were some heavy snowfalls overnight in parts of the central U.S. and snow was continuing to fall Tuesday morning but was expected to gradually diminish, the weather service said.

The worst-affected area was expected to be the foothills and eastern slopes of the Front Range Mountains, which could see up to 16 inches.

Duluth, Minn., has this month seen a record total of 50.2 inches for any month of the year, weather.com said. The figures go back to 1870.

The weather service warned that in areas where the snow was wet, travel would be “especially hazardous."

Rain and floods
There was also a risk of severe storms from the Ohio Valley to the lower Mississippi Valley, weather.com said on Tuesday, with “localized damaging winds and large hail.”

The floods have been blamed for at least five deaths since Thursday and have also forced evacuations, swamped homes and shut down bridges.

Barge traffic on the Mississippi was brought to a near standstill. On Sunday at least one sank and others ran aground or were half-submerged because of the floods.

States of emergency have been declared in Missouri and Illinois.

In Grafton, Ill. -- about 40 miles northeast of St. Louis -- Mayor Tom Thompson said his small community along the Mississippi River was managing, despite the water reaching 10 feet above flood stage by Monday afternoon.

"If it gets another foot (higher), it's going to become another issue," Thompson said, reported The Associated Press. Many businesses "are kinda watching and holding their breath. ... Some things are going to really be close to the wire."

Prison inmates were bused in to work alongside the National Guard and volunteers to build a floodwall of sand and gravel in Clarksville, Mo., but the barrier was showing signs of strain on Monday, according to The AP.

Areas south of St. Louis are not expected to crest until late this week.

Meanwhile, smaller rivers were causing big evacuations elsewhere. In Grand Rapids, Mich., the Grand River rose to a record 21.85 feet --  breaking 1985's record of 19.64 feet -- and driving hundreds of residents outs of their homes while flooding parts of downtown. Flood stage for the Grand River is 18 feet, according to Detroit's Lansing State Journal.

“We have prepared for the worst,” Grand Rapids Mayor George Heartwell said, reported The Lansing State Journal.

NBC's Elizabeth Chuck contributed to this report.

This story was originally published on Tue Apr 23, 2013 6:44 AM EDT

 A vast storm system that spawned tornadoes and killed three people marched toward the East Coast on Friday, delivering spring snow and ice to New England and promising to drench some of the country’s most populous cities.

On Thursday, storms tore through the Great Plains, Midwest and South. Tornadoes were reported in Missouri, Arkansas and Mississippi, and tens of thousands of people were left without power.

Storms blew the steeple off a church and killed someone in Mississippi, and a utility worker was electrocuted repairing damage in Missouri. Earlier in the week, a Nebraska woman died trying to trudge through a vicious snowstorm from her car to her home.

In Shuqualak, Miss., Kathy Coleman said she was outside her home Thursday, signing for a delivery of dialysis medication, when the storm hit. The deliveryman rushed her into the house, and the two of them huddled with the housekeeper in the bathroom.

“All I could hear was trees breaking and falling and glass,” she said. “He started praying and I started praying. Thank God he was here.”

Rogelio V. Solis / AP

Residents begin cleanup of debris from homes hit by a tornado in Shuqualak, Miss.

More coverage from The Weather Channel

Umbrellas bloomed at the Masters golf tournament in Georgia, and elsewhere in the state roofs were ripped off buildings and wrapped around trees like pieces of paper, one witness said.

In Rome, Ga., a wooden beam shot through a house 3 feet from where Tim Crouch was standing.

“I’m lucky,” he said. “I’m sure there are some folks out there who can’t go back to their home.”

On Friday, the system still had remarkable reach — bending from the Canadian border in snowy North Dakota through the Great Lakes and punishing the East Coast with storms all the way to Myrtle Beach, S.C.

Bob Gathany / al.com via AP

Lightning strikes downtown Huntsville, Ala., as strong storms moved into Madison County Thursday.

Tornado watches were in effect in eastern Virginia and North Carolina. Parts of New Hampshire were expected to get 3 to 5 inches of snow, according to meteorologists for The Weather Channel. New York City, Boston and Washington were expecting heavy rain.

The storm was also having some positive effects, bringing much-needed rain to drought-stricken farmland in the Midwest.

Heavy rain on Friday morning even helped extinguish a wildfire that burned across 3,400 acres on the west side of the Marine Corps Base in Quantico, Va., according to a Marine Corps press release. 

Forecasters said a similar storm pattern was taking shape for next week, probably Tuesday through Thursday, packing both snow and severe thunderstorms as it plows east.

The Rockies, parts of the Plains and Upper Midwest could get snow again, The Weather Channel said, and severe storms could rip through the southern Plains and the Mississippi Valley.

The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.

This story was originally published on Fri Apr 12, 2013 8:38 AM EDT

Authorities have a video from a police interrogation room that shows a murder suspect shooting a detective to death before killing himself with the officer's gun, a person with knowledge of the investigation said Saturday.

The suspect, Jeremy Powell, was not handcuffed during questioning at the Jackson Police Department on Thursday, the person said on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk about the ongoing investigation.

Powell overpowered Det. Eric Smith and took his gun, shooting the veteran detective four times before shooting himself in the head inside a third-floor room of the department's headquarters, the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation said. Other officers heard the shots ring out and rushed to the interview room, but both men were dead.

The AP has asked for the video to be released under open records laws, but authorities have not responded to the request.

Powell, 23, was being questioned about the stabbing death of a man whose body was found Monday near a Jackson street.

Ken Winter, executive director of the Mississippi Association of Chiefs of Police, said it's not unusual for a suspect to be unrestrained during questioning.

"It depends on the demeanor of the individual at the time. I would assume that the detective had no reason to believe this guy was aggressive or he wouldn't have been interviewing him in the first place," said Winter, who spent 36 years in law enforcement as a police chief, a detective and as director of the state crime lab.

Winter also said it's not uncommon for an officer to be armed during an interrogation.

"I don't think this detective was doing anything out of the ordinary. Sometimes you can do everything right and it still turn out bad," Winter said.

Smith, 40, is survived by his wife, Eneke, a sergeant with the Jackson Police Department, and two sons.

Related:

• Suspect shot officer, then himself, investigators say
• Miss. cop, suspect shot, killed inside police HQ
• Investigators: Miss. suspect used detective's gun

A murder suspect shot a police detective who was interviewing him at police headquarters in Mississippi's capital city, then shot himself, state authorities said Friday.

Police had previously not disclosed who fired the shot that killed the suspect, 23-year-old Jeremy Powell. Mississippi Bureau of Investigation spokesman Warren Strain said Friday that Powell shot Detective Eric Smith before killing himself. 

The state agency took over the investigation from the Jackson Police Department. 

The men died in a third-floor room Thursday where Smith was interrogating Powell after his arrest. Powell had been arrested in connection with the stabbing death earlier this week of a 20-year-old Jackson man. 

Greg Jenson / The Clarion-Ledger via AP

Jackson, Miss. Assistant Chief Lee Vance, center left, comforts Chief Rebecca Coleman, center right, on Thursday after detective Eric Smith was shot and killed inside the Jackson Police Department. A suspect was also killed.

Autopsies were to be performed Friday, said Hinds County Coroner Sharon Grisham-Stewart. 

City and state officials continued to mourn the death of Smith, a detective who had led the investigation of a number of high-profile murder cases in Mississippi's largest city. Smith, 40, was described as a tall and fit officer who had been with the department since 1995. 

Mayor Harvey Johnson Jr. and Jackson Police Chief Rebecca Coleman asked for a moment of silence at noon Friday. 

"Let us all come together as a city to mourn the loss of this exceptional member of the Jackson Police Department family," Johnson said in a statement. "Though we will never know the full measure of sorrow experienced by the family of Detective Smith, we can let them know that we stand with them during this difficult time." 

Gov. Phil Bryant, a former Hinds County sheriff's deputy, also noted Smith's passing at a ceremony marking the 75th anniversary of the Mississippi Highway Patrol. 

This story was originally published on Thu Apr 4, 2013 8:31 PM EDT

AP / File

Rep. Jessica Upshaw was found dead from a gunshot wound Sunday afternoon.

Mississippi officials are investigating the death of state legislator who was found at the home of a former colleague Sunday afternoon, according to authorities.

State Rep. Jessica Upshaw, 53, appeared to have died of a gunshot wound, Simpson County Sheriff Kenneth Lewis told NBC station WLBT in Jackson, Miss.  

“It appeared she had a gunshot wound to her head. It appeared to be self-inflicted,” Lewis told WLBT .

The Mississippi Bureau of Investigation is leading the investigation, and thus far have said little about the ongoing investigation.

Upshaw, a Republican who had served in the state legislature since 2004 representing District 95, was discovered at the private residence of former state lawmaker Clint Rotenberry, in Mendenhall, Miss., more than 100 miles from her home near the Gulf Coast.

Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant (R) released a statement Sunday evening praising the late lawmaker.

"I have known Jessica for many years as an unselfish and dedicated public servant. This is a tragic loss for her family and all Mississippians, and our thoughts and prayers go out to her family during this difficult time," Bryant said.

Upshaw's death marks the fifth time in as many months that a Mississippi lawmaker has passed away, although the other four died of natural causes.

"Once again this session, the House has been touched by tragedy," Mississippi House Speaker Philip Gunn, said in a statement. "Rep. Jessica Upshaw was an outstanding legislator and friend. She was one of the brightest and most competent members of the House."

Upshaw, a former attorney, was chairwoman of the Conservation and Natural Resources Committee in the Mississippi House of Representatives.

The Associated Press contributed to this report  

Rogelio V. Solis / AP

Golf ball-sized hail litter the ground by Andrew Stamps and his wife Valorie as they prepare to cover their shattered rear window of her 2009 Toyota Avalon in Pearl, Miss., Monday, March 18, 2013, following a hailstorm that hit communities throughout central Mississippi.

Southern states mopped up on Tuesday after a massive storm packing high winds, rain, and fist-sized hail moved across the region, causing substantial damage to homes and vehicles in parts of Mississippi, Alabama, and Georgia.

The storm caused two deaths in Georgia, said Georgia Emergency Management Agency spokesperson Crystal Paulk-Buchanan on Tuesday, and eight people were injured. One person died in Polk County when a tree fell on a car; the second was killed in Talbot County after a vehicle swerved to avoid a downed tree. Numerous homes were damaged by the hail and some local roads remained shut down.

Two tornadoes were confirmed in Tennessee near the towns of McEwen and Murfreesboro, the Weather Channel reported.

Gusts in northern Mississippi were clocked as high as 77 miles per hour, and 17 counties reported substantial damage from the storm, according to the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency.

“What I found interesting is that hail is the threat that we don’t talk about that much,” MEMA spokesman Jeff Rent told the Associated Press. “But you can see how destructive it can be in a short amount of time. We got a tough lesson today.”

The winds made a plaything of one man’s tractor-trailer as it crossed a bridge in northeast Mississippi, picking the big rig up and laying the container portion of the truck on the road below. The truck’s cab remained on the bridge above.

“The wind just gently picked me up and made me go across the of the bridge banister,” truck driver Joe Sisk told local NBC affiliate WLBT. “And it just laid over on its side, just as pretty as you’d please, as gentle as possible.”

An elementary school in Clinton, Miss., was closed on Tuesday after roofs over nearly all its classrooms were ventilated by hail.

“It was baseball-sized hail, and it didn’t start out little,” Clinton resident Jean Weiss told local paper the Clarion-Ledger. “It started out big. People’s back windows were being broken out at our office, and all of our cars have dents in them.”

Eighteen counties reported “moderate to major damage” to residences and businesses in Alabama, according to the state’s emergency management agency.

The storm pulled down trees and power lines in Alabama and Georgia, cutting off electricity for thousands of people into Tuesday.

Georgia Power reported 21,700 customers without power on Tuesday, and Georgia EMC said an additional 11,691 were in the dark. Alabama Power said 103,000 of its customers were without electricity.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Related:

• Spring? Parts of Northeast set for up to a foot of snow