Bay Area congressional offices receive 'suspicious' mail, including envelope with white powder
SAN FRANCISCO - DECEMBER 15: Stacks of boxes holding cards and letters are seen at the U.S. Post Office sort center December 15, 2008 in San Francisco, California. On its busiest day of the year, the U.S. Postal Service is expecting to process and
SAN JOSE, Calif. - Two Bay Area members of Congress received "suspicious" pieces of mail on Friday, including an envelope with white powder.
‘Suspicious’ envelope
What we know:
U.S. Rep Jimmy Panetta's office in Santa Cruz said the envelope was delivered Friday morning and opened by a staffer who immediately disposed of the mail.
"Upon realizing that there was powder in the envelope, she immediately put the envelope in the garbage can, cleared fellow staff members out of the office, and called 911," the representative's office said in a statement. "My priority is the safety and security of my staff and, thankfully, she and the other staff have been initially cleared by medical officials.
In San Jose, Rep. Zoe Lofgren's office confirmed they received a "suspicious letter" Friday morning. SJPD's bomb squad and the San Jose Fire Department responded to the representative's office on North 1st Street, saying the suspicious item contained an "unknown substance."
Unknown substance
What they're saying:
"My San Jose office received a suspicious letter through the mail today. Law enforcement was immediately called. The investigation is ongoing. All of my staffers are safe," Rep. Lofgren's office said.
San Jose police confirmed the substance found in the envelope was not hazardous.
Similar incidents across U.S.
Big picture view:
These incidents come as other congressional offices around the U.S. report receiving similar "suspicious substances."
The office of Sen. Lisa Blunt Rochester, a Delaware Democrat, said in a statement that it was sent a letter with a "suspicious substance" that was intercepted by Capitol Police.
Democratic Sen. Alex Padilla of California said the Postal Service intercepted a suspicious package before it reached his office. And Democratic Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand said postal inspectors intercepted a suspicious piece of mail addressed to her New York City office.
An FBI statement said the bureau and the Postal Inspection Service were "investigating a series of suspicious mailings sent to various addresses nationwide, including Secretary of State offices and their related election offices."
Mailings come three weeks ahead of Election Day
What's next:
Mailed packages containing a powdery substance led to the evacuation this week of election offices in at least two states, Louisiana and Oklahoma. The Ohio secretary of state said the Postal Service intercepted a package containing a white powder intended for its office and noted that similar mailings had been sent to election officials in multiple states.
Numerous states, from Idaho to Florida, said their election offices either received letters or had them intercepted by the Postal Service.
News of the letters comes just three weeks before Election Day and is reminiscent of a similar threat in 2023, when election offices in six states received mailings that contained a white powder. In some cases, the incidents disrupted work around local elections.
What we don't know:
Deputy Postal Inspector Brendan Donahue told reporters Thursday that "any threat or attack on election officials is unacceptable" and that "we are also working with our partners on identifying the individual or individuals responsible for the letters."
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
The Source: Information reported in this story comes from the offices of Rep. Jimmy Panetta and Rep. Zoe Lofgren, plus national reporting from the Associated Press.