Dr. Steven J. Hatfill, one of 30 scientists U.S. police are investigating in connection with the anthrax-letters scare last fall, denies any involvement in what he says are "terrible acts of biological terrorism."

Hatfill, 48, is a bioweapons expert. Law enforcement officials describe him as a "person of interest," but they say he is not a suspect and there is no evidence linking him to the anthrax letters last fall.

The anthrax-laced letters killed five people and sickened about a dozen others. They were assumed to be related to the attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon last September.

Steven Hatfill
Steven Hatfill

"I am a loyal American and I love my country," Hatfill said. "I had nothing to do with the anthrax letters and it is terribly wrong for anyone to contend or think otherwise."

Hatfill blames official bureaucracy and what he calls selected leaks to the media for what appears to be a campaign against him.

"This man has been called a Nazi swine," said his lawyer Victor Glasberg. "His daughter, who is a police officer, has had her home address posted on the Internet."

Glasberg said he's filing a complaint aginst the FBI and other U.S. law enforcement agencies, alleging they leaked information about his client to the media.

Of the 30 or so scientists under investigation, Hatfill's name is the only one to have been made public. Some of the scientists – including Hatfill – submitted to lie detector tests.

"I especially object to having my character assassinated," Hatfill said.

From 1997 to 1999 he worked at the U.S. Army Medical Research Institute at Fort Detrick, Md. In February 1999, he commissioned a study of a hypothetical anthrax attack.

Hatfill told reporters Sunday he was appalled at last fall's bioterror attacks.

"I am just as appalled that my experience, knowledge, dedication and service relative to defending the United States against biological warfare has been turned against me in connection with the search for the anthrax killer," he said.

This month Hatfill was suspended with pay from Louisiana State University's National Center for Biomedical Research and Training, where he worked as an associate director.