TOPEKA — Federal and state law enforcement and health officials are investigating letters containing suspicious white powder that were sent to legislators and state agencies.
The Kansas Bureau of Investigation confirmed a multi-agency response Friday after more than 30 of the letters were reported across the state. No injuries have been reported in connection with the letters, the agency said.
The Kansas City Star and Topeka Capital-Journal reported that Republicans in the Kansas House and Senate had received the letters. Spokeswomen for the House and Senate Democrats told Kansas Reflector they weren’t aware of any Democrats who had received a letter.
Tom Day, director of legislative administrative services, alerted lawmakers to the potential threat in an email Friday. Day said the letters were being received by legislators at their homes, and one was delivered to the Kansas Attorney General’s Office. The letters, which have a return address of Topeka or Kansas City, were turned over to the KBI and Federal Bureau of Investigation, Day said.
“Please be diligent and cautious when receiving mail from unknown individuals,” Day wrote in the email.
A spokeswoman for the KBI didn’t immediately respond to an inquiry asking if the letters were only sent to Republicans, when the first letter was discovered, or how long it would take to identify the powder.
The KBI statement said the agency was working with the FBI, Kansas Department of Health and Environment, Office of the State Fire Marshal, Kansas Highway Patrol, and several local police and fire departments.
Kansas Reflector is part of States Newsroom, a network of news bureaus supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Kansas Reflector maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Sherman Smith for questions: info@kansasreflector.com. Follow Kansas Reflector on Facebook and Twitter.
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