FBI Intercepts Suspicious Letter Addressed To Top Connecticut Election Official

by Staff Report

HARTFORD, CT — Federal authorities intercepted a suspicious letter addressed to the Connecticut Secretary of the State’s office this week, one of a series of mailings sent to election offices across the country, some of which contained a powdery substance.

The FBI and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service are investigating the letters. Preliminary testing of substances recovered in several states has found no hazardous materials, according to the office of Secretary of the State Stephanie Thomas.

Election offices in Louisiana and Oklahoma were evacuated Tuesday after employees discovered envelopes containing a suspicious white powder. Tests on the envelope delivered to the Louisiana Secretary of State’s elections division in Baton Rouge found no evidence of harmful substances, WBRZ reported.

More than 100 suspicious letters have been mailed nationwide, though it is not clear how many went to election officials rather than politicians or other recipients, Votebeat reported.

Arizona Secretary of State Adrian Fontes’ office was evacuated after it received a letter containing white powder that was later found to be harmless. Election offices in Wisconsin and Nebraska also received letters, the envelope sent to Nebraska Secretary of State Bob Evnen’s office being the second since 2024, while letters bound for Ohio, New Hampshire, Washington state, Pennsylvania, Georgia, Idaho, and South Dakota were intercepted before they arrived. A threatening letter containing powder was also intercepted before it reached Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon’s office, the Mesabi Tribune reported.

FILE PHOTO: Sen. Chris Murphy chats with supporters outside the polling location at Cheshire High School on Election Day, Nov. 5, 2024. Credit: Johnathon Henninger / CTNewsJunkie

Connecticut’s two U.S. senators — Democrats Chris Murphy and Richard Blumenthal — were also among the targets. The FBI notified Murphy that a suspicious letter had been directed to his office, according to the Latin Times. U.S. Sen. Alex Padilla of California received the same notice, and a letter addressed to Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York was intercepted before it reached his office.

CONTINUE READING