SALEM, Ore. (AP) Authorities in Oregon are investigating suspicious packages sent to government buildings around the state.
Advertisement
Oregon State Police said Monday that some of the packages contained an unknown substance.
“At this point, it is too early to say where this investigation may lead”, she said.
Hazardous Materials Teams and investigators have responded to these reports.
The FBI is assisting the Oregon State Police in a statewide investigation into suspicious mail received at multiple government offices.
U.S. Postal Inspector Jeremy Leder said it is “very likely” the letters are related.
The East Oregonian in Pendleton reported ( http://bit.ly/1D7aELX ) that Grant County Sheriff Glenn Palmer was taken to a hospital for treatment and observation Monday afternoon after opening an envelope addressed to him that contained white powder.
“I will tell you that the message in the letter was hard to understand”, Ray said.
Spokesmen for the Benton County Sheriff’s Office and Corvallis Police Department said they were not aware of any suspicious letters or packages being received by their departments, and Linn County Administrator Ralph Wyatt said he didn’t know of any similar incidents there. Leder declined to comment on the content of the packages but added there is no reason to believe the general public is at risk.
KATU’s sister station KTVL-TV in Medford reported that the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office had to be evacuated because of a suspicious package. The paper said, “In a matter of seconds, Palmer had a reaction to the substance, including a skin rash on his arms, according to a county official at the scene”.
Advertisement
The FBI is investigating at least 20 letters received by law enforcement agencies across Oregon on Monday after a rural sheriff was hospitalized following exposure to an unidentified white powder in an envelope, officials in the state said. “We receive tens of thousands of letters”.
