Rep. Maxwell Frost's (D-Fla.) Orlando district office was evacuated Friday afternoon after it received a suspicious package. Frost said the package matched "those reported by other offices across the country."
"Today, my office received a suspicious package matching those reported by other offices across the country. As a precaution, our office has been evacuated," Frost said in a statement. He said U.S. Capitol Police and the Orlando Police Department were notified and that authorities were responding. "My staff and I are safe," he added, saying his office was cooperating fully with law enforcement.
Earlier Friday, Rep. Ritchie Torres (D-N.Y.) confirmed that his congressional office received an envelope containing a suspicious substance. Torres said the FBI, NYPD and FDNY responded, and that the FDNY tested the substance and found it was non-hazardous. The envelope has been turned over to the FBI, and an investigation is ongoing.
The incidents are part of a nationwide wave of suspicious mailings to congressional offices and election officials less than three weeks before Election Day. The FBI, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and Capitol Police are investigating. Law enforcement sources told ABC News that more than 100 letters apparently containing white powder may be circulating in the mail system. Law enforcement sources told NBC News that preliminary testing found the powder was not hazardous, but lab testing is continuing. The FBI said it is working to identify "the individual or individuals responsible."
Earlier this week, a white-powder envelope forced the evacuation of the Arizona Capitol tower.
Photo: Adnan Masri / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0
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