(UTV|COLOMBO) The US Secret Service on Wednesday said it had intercepted suspect packages, identified as potential explosive devices, sent to the homes of former president Barack Obama and former secretary of state Hillary Clinton.
There was also a report of a suspicious package being found in the CNN office located at Time Warner Center, New York. According to the Associated Press, the New York Police Department has cordoned off the spot while the CNN offices were evacuated because of the suspicious package.
We just evacuated CNN NY office in the middle of our show. We are with our CNN colleagues. Potential explosive device received here. @cnn
— Poppy Harlow (@PoppyHarlowCNN) October 24, 2018
Meanwhile, the New York Police Department is investigating reports of a ‘suspicious package’ at Columbus Circle, they have urged the public to avoid the area.
NYT reported that Governor Andrew M Cuomo said at a news conference that his office in Manhattan had also received a device, but it was not immediately clear if it was related to the other three devices. Democrat Kamala Harris’s San Diego office was also evacuated after suspicious packages were found near the building, according to her spokeswoman. The packages were not addressed to Harris or her office.
In a statement the US Secret Service said that they intercepted two suspicious packages, one was addressed to Hillary Clinton in Westchester County and the other to Barack Obama. “The packages were immediately identified during routine mail screening procedures as potential explosive devices and were appropriately handled as such,” the Secret Service said in a statement. “The protectees did not receive the packages nor were they at risk of receiving them.”
According to the New York Times, an explosive device was found by a technician who screens mails for Bill and Hillary. An official said that the device found at Bill and Hillary Clinton’s house was similar to one found at the home of billionaire Philanthropist George Soros on Monday. The official wasn’t authorized to publicly discuss an ongoing investigation and spoke on condition of anonymity.
The device was discovered early Wednesday morning at Clinton’s home in Chappaqua, New York.
Police in New Castle, New York — who cover Chappaqua — say they assisted the FBI, Secret Service and Westchester County authorities in “the investigation of a suspicious package.” The White House has condemned the attempted attacks on Obama, Clinton and others. “These terrorizing acts are despicable,” said White House.
Later in the day, President Donald Trump said the suspicious packages that were mailed to prominent Democrats were all being inspected and a full investigation was underway. “We cannot tolerate those cowardly attempts and I strongly condemn all who choose violence,” Trump said.
Courtesy : indianexpress
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