Jeremiah Crowell

So while everyone else was looking at the wreckage, he was on high alert, searching for signs, like unusual illnesses, that this second attack, this time biological, was already underway. What no one knew at the time is that they were looking in the wrong city.

So while everyone else was looking at the wreckage, he was on high alert, searching for signs, like unusual illnesses, that this second attack, this time biological, was already underway. What no one knew at the time is that they were looking in the wrong city.

Deadly anthrax spores sent through the U.S. mail. One of the most lethal weapons of all time comes from an almost indestructible bacteria called anthrax. And in the fall of 2001, envelopes laced with powdered anthrax started showing up in the mail.

Deadly anthrax spores sent through the U.S. mail. One of the most lethal weapons of all time comes from an almost indestructible bacteria called anthrax. And in the fall of 2001, envelopes laced with powdered anthrax started showing up in the mail.

There's a warning. Take penicillin now.

There's a warning. Take penicillin now.

You die now.

You die now.

The anthrax attacks created chaos. The U.S. Capitol and the Supreme Court were contaminated and shut down. Thousands of buildings across the country were evacuated. And innocent people died just from opening their mail.

The anthrax attacks created chaos. The U.S. Capitol and the Supreme Court were contaminated and shut down. Thousands of buildings across the country were evacuated. And innocent people died just from opening their mail.

What's weird is that almost 25 years later, most Americans still have no idea who was behind these attacks. Anthrax was on the nightly news for months. And then it's like the story just disappeared. I've talked to hundreds of people about it. And no one, it seems, remembers what happened with this case. Who mailed those letters? Do you know? My name's Jeremiah Kroll.

What's weird is that almost 25 years later, most Americans still have no idea who was behind these attacks. Anthrax was on the nightly news for months. And then it's like the story just disappeared. I've talked to hundreds of people about it. And no one, it seems, remembers what happened with this case. Who mailed those letters? Do you know? My name's Jeremiah Kroll.

I'm a documentary filmmaker, and I was living and working in New York when all this happened. In those weeks right after 9-11, I remember the stillness of the streets and the collective sense of raw outrage and sadness in the city. And then, anthrax. I felt the fear those letters created, the terrifying way they just kept coming, one after another.

I'm a documentary filmmaker, and I was living and working in New York when all this happened. In those weeks right after 9-11, I remember the stillness of the streets and the collective sense of raw outrage and sadness in the city. And then, anthrax. I felt the fear those letters created, the terrifying way they just kept coming, one after another.

Almost two decades later, when the pandemic hit, I felt that same sense of unpredictable terror in the air. It reminded me of the anthrax story, and I wondered, whatever happened with that? So my team and I started digging into it. We tracked down people who were involved, either affected by the attacks or part of the investigation, FBI agents, victims, wrongly accused suspects.

Almost two decades later, when the pandemic hit, I felt that same sense of unpredictable terror in the air. It reminded me of the anthrax story, and I wondered, whatever happened with that? So my team and I started digging into it. We tracked down people who were involved, either affected by the attacks or part of the investigation, FBI agents, victims, wrongly accused suspects.

And the stories they shared, many for the first time, surprised me. They painted a picture of these events and their aftermath that revealed how, at its core, this was all so personal. Like stories about investigative mistakes right from the start, about civil liberties trampled, and about lives destroyed.

And the stories they shared, many for the first time, surprised me. They painted a picture of these events and their aftermath that revealed how, at its core, this was all so personal. Like stories about investigative mistakes right from the start, about civil liberties trampled, and about lives destroyed.

And even after all of that, after the seven-year odyssey the FBI went on to try to solve this case, some people still wonder if the FBI got it right. I would not consider the case to be closed. In my mind, it certainly is not solved.

And even after all of that, after the seven-year odyssey the FBI went on to try to solve this case, some people still wonder if the FBI got it right. I would not consider the case to be closed. In my mind, it certainly is not solved.