An Illinois man faces federal felony charges after allegedly mailing letters containing an unknown white granular substance to four members of Congress, law enforcement documents show. Matthew G. Unglesbee was charged with false information and hoaxes alongside mailing threatening communications following an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
According to a criminal complaint filed in the case, the investigation began after the FBI received a tip on October 16 from an individual who overheard Unglesbee speaking at a restaurant. The tipster reported hearing Unglesbee state that he had mailed suspicious substances to members of Congress and provided federal authorities with his full name, residential address, and date of birth.
Following the tip and a 911 call placed from a congressional office, agents from the FBI’s Chicago field office responded to the local district offices of three members of Congress in northern Illinois. A staff member at the first targeted office became suspicious after noticing the envelope felt unusual and contained a shifting substance inside. That office was already operating on heightened alert after receiving a comparable letter weeks earlier.
Investigators recovered similar letters from the other northern Illinois offices. All three initial envelopes contained a handwritten note bearing the phrase “HA HA” alongside a white granular substance. On Friday, FBI agents responded to a fourth congressional office belonging to a U.S. senator in the Northern District of Illinois, where a staff member had received an envelope containing a white granular substance and a note reading “HAH enjoy the gift.” Every envelope was marked with Unglesbee’s name and return address.
FBI Task Force Officer Chris Hobbs stated in the complaint that the mailings constituted a common intimidation tactic. Preliminary laboratory testing of the recovered material indicated that the white granular substance contained no chemical or biological toxins.
Federal agents interviewed Unglesbee at his residence on Saturday. During the questioning, Unglesbee confessed to sending the mailings and explained that he had overheard a conversation in a restaurant regarding similar letters sent to lawmakers. He informed investigators that the substance inside the envelopes was ordinary table salt, noting that he selected salt because its appearance resembled anthrax.
Unglesbee told the FBI that he anticipated recipients would respond with hazmat suits and recognize the material as a potential anthrax threat. Although he asserted that the mailings were intended as a joke, the criminal complaint notes that he acknowledged the recipients would perceive the gesture as a genuine threat.
A subsequent search of Unglesbee’s home by federal agents led to the recovery of a fifth letter addressed to the Washington, D.C., office of one of the targeted members of Congress. Investigators determined that the mailings had been dispatched on October 19.
