British authorities file charges in terror case

LONDON -- A 27-year-old man arrested in a raid linked to the discovery of the deadly poison ricin was charged Thursday with conspiring to produce a chemical weapon, police said.

Kamel Bourgass was arrested Jan. 14 when police raided an apartment in Manchester in northern England.

Police said the raid was linked to the Jan. 5 discovery of ricin in a London apartment. The charges Thursday did not specify which chemical Bourgass was involved in producing.

Ricin, derived from the castor bean plant, is one of the world's deadliest toxins and has been linked in the past to al-Qaida and to Iraq.

Bourgass was also charged with possessing articles for terrorist purposes. He is scheduled to appear in a London court today.