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04/28/2003 Archived Entry: "Egyptian Sailor Dies in Brazil from Anthrax-Police"

HE SHOULD HAVE PUT IT IN THE MAIL, IT WOULD HAVE GOTTEN THERE EVENTUALLY: Brazilian police have announced that a crew member of an Egyptian merchant ship has died in northern Brazil, almost certainly from anthrax, after opening a suitcase suspected of containing the deadly bacteria.

Brazil's Castro said Ibrahim had been given the suitcase in Cairo by an unidentified person and was due to deliver it to somebody in Canada. But he doubted Ibrahim knew what the bag contained, otherwise he most likely would not have opened it.

"He opened it because he was curious," Castro said.

The RCMP says that there is no danger to Canadians and they're probably right. That "somebody" in Canada doubtlessly would have smuggled it across the border into the U.S. with little trouble and God knows what would have happened after that. The only reason it wasn't smuggled across is because one sailor got curious and paid the ultimate price for that curiosity. Yup, no reason for you Yanks to be concerned about cross-border security...