WASHINGTON, D.C. — A disturbing discovery has put elected officials and election offices across the country on high alert.
Dozens of congressional and election offices are receiving suspicious mail containing an unknown substance. Now, authorities are working to uncover who’s behind it.
From Capitol Hill to local election offices, at least three dozen members of Congress- Republicans and Democrats, have been targeted. At least 26 election offices across multiple states have also reported suspicious letters.
“I think it’s clearly connected to the upcoming election,” said Michael Gould, a former NYPD lieutenant and founding member of the NYPD canine unit.
Among those targeted: New York senators Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y.
“This afternoon, a suspicious piece of mail was sent to my New York City office and was safely intercepted by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service. I am deeply grateful to the postal inspectors for protecting my staff,” Sen. Gillibrand said in a statement on Oct. 15.
Michigan Democrat Elissa Slotkin, D-Mich., was also targeted.
“Tonight, we received confirmation that a suspicious letter was intercepted en route to our office in Detroit. Everyone is safe, and the matter is being investigated by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and the FBI,” Slotkin said in a social media post on Oct. 16. “This follows a string of similar letters, many containing unknown powdery substances, being sent to elected officials across the U.S. I thank law enforcement for their hard work to keep us all safe.”
Gould said investigators should be able to determine the substance inside the mail relatively quickly and potentially even find out who’s behind it.
“With DNA right now, believe it or not, there’s a very good chance of these things being solved. But hopefully nobody gets hurt in the process,” said Gould.
No injuries or illnesses have been reported. But investigators are still unsure of who sent the letters and why.
“The challenge is volume. Just think of the amount of mail coming in, coming out,” Gould said. “To screen these things is a Herculean task. And as I said, only one piece has to get through.”
Some envelopes, including one shared on social media by Rep. Eugene Vindman, D-Va., displayed the initials “DSA” and a return address once associated with the Democratic Socialists of America. The group has publicly denied any involvement.
The FBI, Capitol Police and U.S. Postal Inspection Service are investigating. The FBI sent the following statement regarding the ongoing investigation:
“The FBI and U.S. Postal Inspection Service are investigating a series of suspicious mailings sent to various addresses nationwide, including Secretary of State offices and their related election offices, and Congressional offices. Some of the letters contained an unknown substance and we are working closely with our law enforcement partners to respond to each incident. We are also working with our partners to identify the individual or individuals responsible for the letters. This FBI and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service will continue to safeguard the public and secure elections for American citizens.”
