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Illinois man charged over white-powder letters sent to members of Congress

Matthew Unglesbee, 36, of Quincy, Illinois, has been charged with mailing letters containing a white granular substance to members of Congress. The FBI says he told agents it was salt and denied involvement in earlier mailings.

2 outlets · 1L · 0C · 1R First reported Account updated
Image: NBC News
Image: Washington Examiner

1 / 2

The story, neutrally told

Mixed · 2Matthew Unglesbee has been charged in Illinois with mailing letters containing a white granular substance to members of Congress, according to NBC News and the Washington Examiner. Mixed · 2He faces two charges: false information and hoaxes, and mailing threatening communications. Right · 1The Justice Department announced the charges on Monday. The Washington Examiner reports that Unglesbee is 36 and lives in Quincy, in southwestern Illinois, that he appeared in court on Monday, and that a detention hearing is set for 3 p.m. Wednesday at the federal courthouse in Springfield.

Left · 1NBC News reports that four letters went to four members of Congress. Three contained a handwritten note reading "HA HA", and the fourth said "HAH enjoy the gift." All were sent in envelopes bearing his name and home address. Left · 1According to the FBI, as reported by NBC News, Unglesbee admitted in a Sunday interview that he sent the letters after hearing about other letters mailed earlier in the month. He said the substance was salt, which he said "kind of looks like" anthrax, and he acknowledged people would see the letters as dangerous. He denied involvement in the earlier mailings. Left · 1A search of his home found a fifth envelope, unmailed and empty, addressed to a member of Congress, per the FBI.

Left · 1The case began when an anonymous online tipster told the FBI on Oct. 16 that they had overheard Unglesbee talking about mailing a suspicious substance to members of Congress. The letters reached congressional offices three days later, and the FBI responded. Left · 1The FBI is separately investigating other suspicious-substance letters sent to members of Congress and elections officials in recent weeks.

Every sentence links to the reporting it rests on. The pill in front of each says where its sources sit: Left, Centre or Right when one side supplies at least half of them, Mixed when they are evenly split. The number is how many outlets it cites.

Left1 outlet

Framing
NBC News gives a detailed account drawn from the FBI's allegations: the notes, the confession, the tip and the separate investigation.
Emphasis
The notes in the letters, his alleged admissions, the salt explanation, the tip-off and the wider FBI probe.
Leaves out or plays down
Does not give his age, town or the detention hearing date.
For example
“He said in the FBI interview that the granular substance was salt, which he said “kind of looks like” anthrax.” — NBC News

Centre0 outlets

No centre outlet in our sources has covered this story yet.

Right1 outlet

Framing
The Washington Examiner reports the arrest briefly as a "hoax" and attributes it to the Justice Department.
Emphasis
The charges, his age and town, and the court schedule.
Leaves out or plays down
Leaves out the notes, his alleged admission, the salt, the tip and the separate FBI investigation.
Charged language
“hoax”
For example
“Illinois man charged in white powder mail hoax targeting members of Congress” — Washington Examiner

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