Person of Interest
The FBI appears to have turned its investigation of the anthrax murders away from Dr. Steven Hatfill. The searches in Wellsville today appear to be focused on Kenneth Berry, M.D. He is the founder of a group called PREEMPT.
WOKR-TV says
(Wellsville, NY) 08/05/04 – A home in Wellsville was searched by the FBI and the US Postal Inspection Service Thursday.
Police said it is part of an investigation into the 2001 anthrax cases.
The home belongs to the founder of an organization that trains medical professionals to respond to chemical and biological attacks.
It’s not known what prompted the search or what they were looking for.
PREEMPT also advocated the mass inoculation of all American civilians for anthrax. The organization does not appear to currently be in operation.
Dr. Berry is specifically identified in this report from WHEC-TV
WELLSVILLE, N.Y. (AP) – Federal agents investigating the deadly 2001 anthrax attacks on Thursday searched homes belonging to the founder of an anti-terrorism organization that trains medical professionals to respond to chemical and biological attacks. More than three dozen agents, some in protective suits, combed through two homes in this Allegany County village in western New York. Property records list the homes as the past and present addresses of Dr. Kenneth Berry, 48, who founded PREEMPT Medical Counter-Terrorism, Inc. in 1997.
UPDATE:
Dr. Berry is frustrating me. Google is no help at all. Other than the PREEMPT references, there is nothing. In his bio he mentions being president of the American Academy of Emergency Physicians and member of the board and special counsel to the chair of the Board of Certification in Emergency Medicine. Google does not show any reference to those exact organizations. Searches of sites with similar names do not turn up any reference to Dr. Berry. In another bio, he is stated to be multi-instrument rated as a commercial pilot, and is an aviation medical examiner with the Federal Aviation Administration. The FAA says that he has a private pilot’s license..
I am just not finding information that ought to be there. The man’s bio has groups that have no web sites? Or, he somehow got the name wrong for a group that he was president of? Other than his statements that he is an expert in WMD on the PREEMPT site, I can find no sign that he exists in the community of scholars. His schedule listed on the site ends in 2000. He is not listed on the web sites of either Jones Memorial Hospital or St. James Mercy Hospital, the only hospitals in the area.
Who is this guy?
UPDATE 8-6-2004 a.m.:
Dr. Berry was arrested by local police in New Jersey after a family altercation. The NY Post has this and other info from the New Jersey searches.
The Wellsville Daily Reporter has an article up. Some highlights:
Berry is not originally from Wellsville, but he was charged by New York State Police with felony forgery in 1999.[sic] On March 17, 1999, he entered a guilty plea to a violation, a misdemeanor. He was accused of signing a fake will of the late Dr. Andrew Colletta, who died in May of 1998 at the age of 46.
At the time, Allegany County District Attorney Terry Parker, who prosecuted the case, said, “Ideally, if he were any other individual who had done this, I would have insisted on a misdemeanor. However, any criminal conviction would have resulted in him losing his medical license and never practicing again. As far as society was concerned, that would not be appropriate … he does a lot of good for society with what he does.”
Last week, the Wellsville Code Enforcement Office sent a violation to Dr. Berry for having two junk cars on his property. Village officials in Wellsville said Berry called and said the vehicles belonged to his daughter’s boyfriend and they were going to be removed.
Former Jones Memorial Hospital Chief Operation Officer William DiBerardino said he saw Dr. Berry last week.
“I don’t know what to think, this is hard to believe,” said DiBerardino. “I talked to him a couple weeks ago at Music on the Lawn, we talked about flying. Most of our conversations seemed to end up about flying because I love flying and he has been flying for years.
“He was different. He was a decent doctor by all accounts, so, how do you explain different?” DiBerardino added.
Dr. Berry’s next door neighbor, Bob Kosciewicz said “I last saw him last week … this is a shock. This is surprising. He’s a very quiet person.
“I don’t picture him as a terrorist or anything like that,” said Kosciewicz. “I understand he has a plane and he flies to where ever. He was on one of those rent-a-doctor deals, and he flew all over the place. I punched up his resume and saw his credentials, it was pretty impressive.”
“I don’t see him too often because he works other places so often,” Kosciewicz continued. “They lived next door for about three years. The family left for vacation, and I thought he had some work in Pittsburgh. But I don’t know where he works exactly … he was different, but I always liked him.”
More when I learn it.
