Police video and newly released accounts show a September standoff led investigators to the biological toxin at the center of the federal case.
EAST CLEVELAND, OH— New details from police records, body-camera video and a 911 call show how a report of gunfire at an East Cleveland apartment building developed into a standoff and eventually led authorities to ricin, a deadly biological toxin that is now at the center of a federal criminal case.
Brandon L. Baxter, 34, has been indicted on federal charges of prohibitions with respect to biological weapons and possession of a biological toxin by a restricted person. Federal prosecutors allege Baxter knowingly possessed ricin, which is lethal to humans. The new accounts from East Cleveland police provide details that were not included in the initial federal announcement, including how officers encountered Baxter and how authorities learned that ricin might be inside his apartment.
The incident began Sept. 19 at an apartment building on Nelacrest Road after a neighbor called 911 and reported hearing about a dozen gunshots inside the building, according to a recording released by East Cleveland police. Officers responding to the building did not find anyone who had been shot. Instead, police body-camera footage showed a confrontation with a man authorities identified as Baxter.
The video showed Baxter emerging from his apartment carrying a large knife and confronting officers in the hallway. Police repeatedly ordered him to stop and warned him that he could be shot. Baxter eventually retreated into the apartment. During the confrontation, he also warned people in the building that gas was flowing and told them to leave if they did not want to die, according to the recording reported by News 5 Cleveland. The confrontation prompted a larger law enforcement response.
Cuyahoga County sheriff’s deputies eventually broke a window and used pepper balls to force Baxter from the apartment, according to East Cleveland police. Commander Todd Carroscia told News 5 that responding officers did not know Baxter’s history when they first arrived at the building. Authorities took Baxter into custody and transported him for a medical evaluation after the standoff.
The investigation changed course after Baxter began talking to an officer at the hospital, Carroscia said. According to the commander, Baxter made statements indicating that he had been making ricin in his refrigerator. Carroscia said authorities later collected material that tested positive for ricin. He also said Baxter reportedly made a statement suggesting he had been consuming the substance, although Carroscia said he did not know whether that claim was accurate. Federal prosecutors have not publicly alleged a specific intended target for the ricin.
A federal grand jury subsequently indicted Baxter. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Ohio announced the charges Oct. 2 and said Baxter knowingly possessed ricin. The federal announcement did not provide details about the September police response or explain why authorities believe Baxter possessed the toxin. The FBI’s Cleveland Division is investigating with assistance from East Cleveland police and the Cuyahoga County Sheriff’s Office.
The case has drawn additional attention because Baxter has a previous federal terrorism-related conviction. In 2012, Baxter and other defendants were charged in a plot to detonate what they believed were explosives at the Route 82 bridge near Cleveland. Federal records from that case show the men obtained devices they believed contained C-4 explosives through an undercover operation and attempted to detonate them. The explosives were inert, and the FBI arrested the participants. Baxter later pleaded guilty to federal charges stemming from the plot and received a prison sentence.
Records reviewed in connection with the new case show Baxter was released from federal prison in 2020 and was on federal supervised release when he was arrested in September. His prior conviction is also significant to one of the new charges, which accuses him of possessing a biological toxin as a restricted person. Prosecutors have emphasized that the new indictment contains allegations and is not evidence of guilt. The government would have to prove the charges beyond a reasonable doubt.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office said Baxter faces a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison on the two new counts if convicted, although any sentence would ultimately be determined by the court after considering the circumstances of the case and Baxter’s criminal history. Assistant U.S. Attorney Duncan T. Brown and Trial Attorney Ryan D. White of the Justice Department’s National Security Division Counterterrorism Section are prosecuting the case.
Baxter remains jailed and is expected to appear for arraignment Oct. 14 before U.S. Magistrate Judge Jonathan D. Greenberg. Authorities have not publicly identified an intended victim or disclosed evidence showing what Baxter allegedly planned to do with the ricin. The FBI investigation remains active as the federal case moves into court.
Author note: Last updated October 7, 2026.