All four of Colorado’s Democratic members of the U.S. House of Representatives and one U.S. senator received letters with a suspicious substance Monday, the lawmakers said.
The FBI and U.S. Postal Inspection Service are investigating letters sent to officials in several states, including Nebraska, Minnesota, Arizona, Mississippi and Oregon. In a statement, the FBI said it is not confirming specific cases, but it confirmed it is investigating a “series of suspicious mailings” sent to offices nationwide and seeking to identify individuals responsible for the letters.
Several letters in other states were sent to election officials. Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold’s office has not received any similar mailings, her office said Tuesday.
U.S. Rep. Diana DeGette said in a statement that her staff members are unharmed after her Denver office received a letter with a “suspicious substance.” She condemned the “shameful act of intimidation” that targeted her and other officials.
Federal authorities are investigating a letter House Assistant Minority Leader Joe Neguse’s Boulder office received containing a white powder, his office said. He said there is no continued threat to public safety but that there is a “palpable sense of fear” in communities across the country.
“The nature of this mailing, and others like it being received by elected officials across the country, whether to cause physical harm or provoke unease among public servants, will not prevent me and my team from working day in and day out to serve the people of Colorado’s 2nd District,” Neguse said in a statement.
U.S. Rep. Jason Crow’s Aurora office also received a letter that contained an unknown substance. He said his staff is safe and his office remains open.
The FBI took for testing an envelope that U.S. Rep. Brittany Pettersen’s Lakewood office received Monday.
“This is a deeply disturbing effort to intimidate sitting Members of Congress,” Pettersen said in a statement. “I’m grateful for the safety of my staff – who are hardworking public servants and should not have to fear for their lives while doing their jobs.”
Postal investigators intercepted a letter addressed to U.S. Sen. John Hickenlooper’s Denver office before it was delivered. The Denver office of Colorado’s other U.S. senator, Michael Bennet, has not received any letters similar to those sent to other offices, his office said Tuesday. Hickenlooper is running for reelection this year; Bennet is not.
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