A Missouri man was sentenced to 12 years in federal prison without parole today for attempting to buy a chemical weapon capable of killing hundreds of people.
According to the U.S. Department of Justice, Jason William Siesser, 46, of Columbia, Missouri pleaded guilty to one count of attempting to acquire a chemical weapon and one count of aggravated identity theft on August 4, 2020.
Siesser purchased two 10 mL units of the chemical on the dark web using Bitcoin on July 4, 2018. Siesser told the seller that, “I plan to use it soon after I receive it.”
He ordered three 10 mL units of the chemical weapon on August 4, 2018, again using Bitcoin, for the equivalent of $150. Officials say the quantity of the chemical weapon has the capacity to kill approximately 300 people.
Following a controlled delivery of a package that contained an inert substance to his home that he believed contained the chemical weapon, law enforcement officers executed a search warrant on his residence where they located the inert substance he believed to be the chemical weapon. Officers also located two other seemingly unopened shipping boxes.
Inside those packages were approximately 10 grams of cadmium arsenide, approximately 100 grams of cadmium metal, and approximately 50 mL of hydrochloric acid.
Law enforcement officials located writings in Siesser's home that articulated his heartache, anger and resentment over a breakup, and a desire for the person who caused the heartache to die.