Law enforcement, Hazmat respond to delivery of contaminated election mail to Secretary of State

Tuesday, September 17, 2024 at 6:47 PM

By Staff report

The mail piece and contents are being transported to an FBI laboratory for forensic testing. No injuries resulted from the incident.

Employees at the Indiana Secretary of State’s Office reported delivery Tuesday of suspicious envelope containing a powdery substance.

Public safety and law enforcement agencies were called to the State Government Center to secure the immediate area, conduct tests, and remove the suspicious material. Responding agencies included the Indiana Capital Police, Indiana State Police, State Fire Marshall, Indiana Department of Homeland Security, State and Post Office hazardous materials units, and the FBI.

After field testing by local, state, and federal authorities the contents in the envelope were preliminarily determined to be non-hazardous. The mail piece and contents are being transported to an FBI laboratory for forensic testing. No injuries resulted from the incident.

The Indiana Secretary of State’s Office has received alerts from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and federal law enforcement agencies to be alert for suspicious, potentially dangerous election mail. Other states have reported receiving suspicious is aware of several other Secretary of State Offices across the country recently receiving suspicious election mail.

“We take every precaution to ensure the safety of our employees and the public. I want to especially thank members of my team; our law enforcement partners and other first responders for their swift and professional response. We are relieved that everyone is safe,” said Diego Morales, Indiana Secretary of State.

Earlier this year, Secretary Morales hand delivered instructions on spotting and handling suspicious email, along with doses of Narcan nasal spray to county clerks’ offices throughout the state. In July and August, the Secretary of State and Indiana Department of Homeland Security conducted a series of regional election security and safety conferences for county election administrators, emergency management offices and local law enforcement agencies.