In recent years, Botox has become increasingly popular as a commercial wrinkle reducer, but now, the habit may be a hijacked by terrorists – and not for their skin!
The botulinum toxin, a key ingredient in Botox, could kill a 150-pound adult with a speck smaller than just a grain of sand. It is one of the most deadly substances known to man and that’s why there’s concern that a mysterious cosmetic trader in Russia was hawking the stuff at a suspiciously low price.
The man named Rakhman began showing up in salons in St. Petersburg with a briefcase full of vials claiming to have gotten them from a supplier in Chechnya.
A factory was never found, but U.S. officials are positive that illegal labs exist now because there is a rising black market for the deadly drug which could be used to make biological and chemical weapons.
“It is the only profit-making venture for terrorists that can also potentially yield a weapon of mass destruction,” said Kenneth Coleman, a physician and biodefense expert.
The undiluted toxin is so powerful that Al-Qaeda has sought it out and many fear that they would try to inflict widespread casualties through contamination of food or water supplies.
“There are no major obstacles,” the scientist continued. “It’s not that hard to acquire the bacterial strains. But you don’t even have to make it. You can buy it from existing manufacturers. And you can buy it in sufficient quantity to cause widespread harm.”
Scary.
[Image via WENN.]
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