HOLBROOK MOHR,Associated Press

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — A Mississippi man whose home and business were searched as part of an investigation into poisoned letters sent to the president and others has been arrested in the case, according to the FBI.

Everett Dutschke, 41, was arrested about 12:50 a.m. Saturday at his Tupelo home by FBI special agents in connection with the letters, FBI spokeswoman Deborah Madden said. The letters, which allegedly contained ricin, were sent last week to President Barack Obama, Sen. Roger Wicker of Mississippi and earlier to an 80-year-old Mississippi judge, Sadie Holland.

Madden said FBI special agents arrested Dutschke (pronounced DUHS'-kee) without incident. She said additional questions should be directed to the U.S. attorney's office. The office in Oxford did not immediately respond to messages Saturday.

Dutschke's attorney, Lori Nail Basham, did not immediately respond to phone or text messages Saturday. Basham said earlier this week that Dutschke was "cooperating fully" with investigators. Dutschke has insisted he had nothing to do with the letters.

Ryan Taylor, a spokesman for Wicker, said Saturday that "because the investigation is still ongoing, we're not able to comment."

Charges in the case were initially filed against an Elvis impersonator but then dropped. Attention then turned to Dutschke, who has ties to the former suspect and the judge and senator. Earlier in the week, as investigators searched his primary residence in Tupelo, Dutschke had remarked to reporters, "I don't know how much more of this I can take."

Charges initially were filed last week against Paul Kevin Curtis, 45, the Elvis impersonator, but then dropped after authorities said they had discovered new information. Curtis' lawyers say he was framed.

Curtis' attorney, Christi McCoy, said Saturday: "We are relieved but also saddened. This crime is nothing short of diabolical. I have seen a lot of meanness in the past two decades, but this stops me in my tracks. "

Dutschke and Curtis were acquainted. Curtis said they had talked about possibly publishing a book on an alleged conspiracy to sell body parts on a black market. But he said they later had a feud.

Judge Holland is a common link between the two men who have been investigated, and both know Wicker.

Holland was the presiding judge in a case in which Curtis was accused of assaulting a Tupelo attorney in 2004. Holland sentenced him to six months in the county jail. He served only part of the sentence, according to his brother.

Holland's family has had political skirmishes with Dutschke.

Her son, Steve Holland, a Democratic state representative, said he thinks his mother's only other encounter with Dutschke was at a rally in the town of Verona in 2007, when Dutschke ran as a Republican against Steve Holland.

Holland said his mother confronted Dutschke after he made a derogatory speech about the Holland family. She demanded that he apologize, which Holland says he did.

Steve Holland said he doesn't know if his mother remembers Curtis' assault case.

A.D. Ibarra

-Eagle Pass

     Mexican Consulate Ricardo Santana informed The News Gram of an initiative to repatriate hundreds of Mexican nationals who have been detained for immigration violations in the US and are being held by the US Border Patrol.

     Beginning April 26th, 47 of these illegal immigrants will be brought from the city of Laredo to be deported into a state other than their own to Piedras Negras, Coahuila to return to their place of origin on a daily basis at 10:00 A.M. every day for 60 days at International Bridge II in Eagle Pass.

     Santana stated that they are working in coordination with United States officials to get this done as part of an initiative to expedite the return of these Mexican nationals into Mexico.

"This is a pilot program for Mexican nationals deported from Laredo who are only men ages 20 to 60 years on charges of violation of immigration laws."

The Mexican Consulate notified all Mexican authorities to support them in this process.

"They will be forwarded at the National Institute of Migration as a workbench to personally interview each, confirm their nationality, and detect cases of consular protection."

The Consul told the News Gram that these individuals are not criminals, they are working people who entered the United States and were arrested for migratory laws and the return is known as lateral repatriations.

     Once there they will receive assistance from the consulate to make the necessary phone calls or to find out the schedule of the next bus returning to their states of origin.  Other services provided by the consulate include medical attention if so needed and if the need shelter, there is a place where they can stay in Piedras Negras until they can make contact with a family member if they need to to make the arrangements with family members.

Del Rio, Texas – U.S. Border Patrol agents throughout Del Rio Sector seized more than 1,200 pounds of marijuana, with an estimated value of $977,272.

On April 18, agents assigned to the Eagle Pass South Station encountered a 2002 Dodge Ram 1500 pickup while patrolling on a local ranch. While agents were conducting records checks on the driver and passenger, another agent discovered a cache of marijuana nearby. Agents seized five bundles of marijuana, weighing a total of 218 pounds, worth an estimated $174,536. The two subjects were turned over to Homeland Security Investigations agents for prosecution.

In another seizure on April 18, agents working at the Highway 57 checkpoint encountered a Chrysler 300 suspected of transporting illegal narcotics. After a search of the vehicle, agents found a total of 43 cellophane-wrapped bricks. The bricks contained a total of 42 pounds of marijuana, worth an estimated $33,728.

Tuesday, April 23, Eagle Pass North Station agents observed a Ford Mustang, with two occupants, in an area known for narcotics smuggling. When the agents conducted a vehicle stop, the driver attempted to abscond. Agents apprehended the driver after a short foot chase. A subsequent search of the vehicle revealed three military-style duffel bags in the back of the vehicle. The duffel bags contained 264 pounds of marijuana worth an estimated $211,280. The driver, who is a U.S. citizen, the vehicle, and the marijuana, were turned over to the FBI. The passenger was turned over to the Eagle Pass Police Department.

In several separate incidents from April 17-24, agents from the Eagle Pass South Station seized 695 pounds of abandoned marijuana worth an estimated $557,728. In all of the seizures, Border Patrol agents encountered foot sign along known narcotics smuggling trails. While walking the trails, agents encountered a total of six military-style duffel bags and four large sugar sacks containing mariuana. 

All cases were tuned over to the Drug Enforcement Administration, unless otherwise noted.

The Del Rio Border Patrol Sector is part of the South Texas Campaign, which leverages federal, state and local resources to combat transnational criminal organizations. For Fiscal Year 2013, the Del Rio Sector has seized over 24,500 pounds of marijuana worth an estimated $19.6 million dollars.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection is the unified border agency within the Department of Homeland Security charged with the management, control and protection of our nation's borders at and between the official ports of entry. CBP is charged with keeping terrorists and terrorist weapons out of the country while enforcing hundreds of U.S. laws.