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The letter was intercepted by law enforcement before it reached the White House, authorities said.
A package containing ricin poison that was addressed to US President Donald Trump was intercepted before reaching the White House, officials told US media.
The letter was discovered in a White House mail screening facility earlier this week, officials said.
They said that a substance found inside the envelope was identified as ricin, a poison naturally found in castor beans.
The Trump administration has yet to comment on the reports.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Secret Service are investigating where the package came from and whether others have been sent through the United States postal system.
“At this time, there is no known threat to public safety,” the FBI told CNN in a statement Saturday.
An official told the New York Times that investigators believe the package was sent from Canada. Reports say that the presence of ricin was identified after two tests.
Ricin is produced by processing castor beans. It is a deadly substance that, if swallowed, inhaled, or injected, can cause nausea, vomiting, internal bleeding, and ultimately organ failure.
There is no known antidote for ricin. If a person is exposed to ricin, death can occur within 36 to 72 hours, depending on the dose received, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
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Castor seeds, which are used to make the deadly ricin poison
The CDC said the poison, which has been used in terrorist plots, can be turned into a weapon in the form of dust, mist or pellet.
The White House and other federal buildings have been targeted by ricin packets in the past.
In 2014, a Mississippi man was sentenced to 25 years in prison for sending ricin-dusted letters to former President Barack Obama and other officials.
Four years later, in 2018, a former Navy veteran was charged with sending toxic letters to the Pentagon and the White House.
