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Man arrested in connection with pipe bombs targeting Trump critics Man arrested in connection with pipe bombs targeting Trump critics
(35 minutes later)
A man in southern Florida has been arrested in connection with the suspected pipe bombs that were sent to political figures including Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton. A man in southern Florida has been arrested in connection with the suspected pipe bombs that were sent this week to critics of Donald Trump including Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton.
“We can confirm one person is in custody,” Sarah Isgur Flores, a Justice Department spokeswoman, said on Twitter. “We can confirm one person is in custody,” Sarah Isgur Flores, a Justice Department spokeswoman, said on Twitter. The suspect is in his 50s, has an address in the city of Aventura and also has ties to New York, according to reports.
Federal agents were surrounding a vehicle in Plantation after news of the arrest was announced. The man was arrested at an auto parts shop in Plantation. Federal agents were seen removing a vehicle covered in political stickers from the location. Jeff Sessions, the attorney general, was scheduled to hold a press conference at 2.30pm on Friday.
Two more suspicious packages were discovered in the US on Friday, addressed to a Democratic senator and the country’s former intelligence chief and further escalating what authorities have described as a domestic terrorism campaign. Sessions was briefing Trump at the White House after two more suspicious packages, addressed to a Democratic senator and the country’s former intelligence chief, were discovered earlier on Friday, bringing the total to 12.
The packages were sent to Senator Cory Booker of New Jersey and James Clapper, the former director of national intelligence. There have now been 12 packages found this week, after pipe bombs were sent to former president Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, and several other Democratic political figures. The newest packages were sent to Senator Cory Booker of New Jersey and James Clapper, the former director of national intelligence. Suspected pipe bombs were previously sent to eight other prominent critics of Trump. None exploded before being found and no injuries were reported.
“The #FBI has confirmed an 11th package has been recovered in Florida, similar in appearance to the others, addressed to Sen. Cory Booker,” the FBI said on Twitter early Friday, just minutes before a 12th package was found, in New York. Shortly before the arrest, Trump complained that the series of attempted bombings was damaging his party’s prospects for next month’s midterm elections. He also appeared to stoke conspiracy theories about the authenticity of the explosives.
Jeff Sessions, the attorney general, said at an event in Washington that federal agents were “working tirelessly” to catch the sender of the packages. “I can assure you that we are dedicating every available resource to this effort,” said Sessions. “Republicans are doing so well in early voting, and at the polls, and now this ‘Bomb’ stuff happens and the momentum greatly slows - news not talking politics. Very unfortunate, what is going on. Republicans, go out and vote!”, Trump said. The president had also complained in a 3am tweet that he was being unfairly blamed for the attempted bombings.
But Donald Trump responded by casting doubt on the attacks and focusing on political concerns. Sessions had said at an event in Washington earlier on Friday morning that federal agents were “working tirelessly” to catch the sender of the packages. “I can assure you that we are dedicating every available resource to this effort,” said Sessions.
“Republicans are doing so well in early voting, and at the polls, and now this ‘Bomb’ stuff happens and the momentum greatly slows - news not talking politics. Very unfortunate, what is going on. Republicans, go out and vote!” he said on Twitter. Investigators searching for the sender were on Thursday night focusing on a postal sorting facility in Opa-locka, outside Miami, which authorities said the packages may have passed through. Investigators were drawn to the region by US Postal Service records and were examining forensic evidence on the packages.
The 11th package was discovered in or near Opa-locka, Florida, sources told ABC News. Matching envelopes, containing what appeared to be pipes packed with explosives and connected to wires, were discovered across the US over the past week, in what authorities described as a campaign of domestic terrorism.
Investigators trying to find the perpetrator behind the spate of explosive devices have zeroed in on the postal facility in Opa-locka, which the packages may have passed through, according to ABC. Forensic evidence found on the parcels and US Postal Service images of mail drew investigators to south Florida. The first was discovered in a mailbox at the New York home of George Soros, a wealthy liberal donor. It was followed by similar items intercepted by the Secret Service that were addressed to the homes of Obama, the former president, and Clinton, the former secretary of state.
And in New York, also on Friday morning, authorities discovered another suspicious package at a Manhattan post office. Over the following days packages were found addressed to the former vice-president Joe Biden, the former attorney general Eric Holder, the former CIA director John Brennan, the Democratic congresswoman Maxine Waters and the actor Robert De Niro. All are high-profile opponents of Trump.
It was addressed to Clapper at the offices of CNN, but was intercepted at a postal facility in the Hell’s Kitchen neighborhood before reaching the network’s offices a few blocks further uptown, CNN reported. Previously, CNN’s Manhattan office was evacuated on Wednesday when another pipe bomb was sent there, meant for former CIA director John Brennan. The package addressed to Booker was intercepted in Florida, while the one for Clapper was discovered on Friday morning at a post office in the Hell’s Kitchen section of Manhattan. It was addressed to Clapper at the offices of CNN, a few blocks away, where he is employed as an analyst.
Both former intelligence officials have become outspoken critics of Trump. Anyone who has in any way been a public critic of President Trump needs to be on extra alert and take some precautions
“We are responding to a report of a suspicious package in the vicinity of West 52nd Street and 8th Avenue, #Manhattan. Please avoid the area and expect a police presence and heavy traffic,” the New York police department said in a tweet. CNN’s Manhattan offices were evacuated on Wednesday when another suspected pipe bomb was sent there, meant for former CIA director John Brennan. Both former intelligence officials have been outspoken critics of Trump’s actions in office.
Clapper on Friday said the packages were part of campaign of “domestic terrorism” intended to sow fear and intimidate people.Clapper on Friday said the packages were part of campaign of “domestic terrorism” intended to sow fear and intimidate people.
“This is not going to silence the administration’s critics,” Clapper told CNN. “But anyone who has in any way been a public critic of President Trump needs to be on extra alert and take some precautions particularly with respect to mail.”“This is not going to silence the administration’s critics,” Clapper told CNN. “But anyone who has in any way been a public critic of President Trump needs to be on extra alert and take some precautions particularly with respect to mail.”
Clapper praised the FBI for its work on the investigation and for persevering in the face of abuse from the president. Trump has accused the FBI of being involved in a “deep state” conspiracy to undermine him and of botching an inquiry into private email server used by Hillary Clinton. “Will the FBI ever recover its once stellar reputation?” Trump asked in a tweet in August.Clapper praised the FBI for its work on the investigation and for persevering in the face of abuse from the president. Trump has accused the FBI of being involved in a “deep state” conspiracy to undermine him and of botching an inquiry into private email server used by Hillary Clinton. “Will the FBI ever recover its once stellar reputation?” Trump asked in a tweet in August.
The governor of New York, Andrew Cuomo, said Trump’s reaction to the attempted attacks was “wholly inappropriate” and showed he had “never fully made the transition” to being presidential. “Am I hopeful that the zebra changes his or her stripes today? No,” Cuomo said on CNN.The governor of New York, Andrew Cuomo, said Trump’s reaction to the attempted attacks was “wholly inappropriate” and showed he had “never fully made the transition” to being presidential. “Am I hopeful that the zebra changes his or her stripes today? No,” Cuomo said on CNN.
Cuomo said the hunt for the person or persons behind the bombs is “making significant progress”. While the devices did not explode and it is unclear whether they were intended to, Cuomo said they were genuine explosives. Supporters of Trump speculated without evidence that the devices were not viable and could not have harmed people. But on Friday, the governor of New York, Andrew Cuomo. “No one can say that they were fake bombs,” said Cuomo. “These were dangerous devices that could explode.”
“No one can say that they were fake bombs. These were dangerous devices that could explode,” he said. A suspected pipe bomb was also discovered at the offices of the De Niro in lower Manhattan on Thursday. The actor received a standing ovation at the Tony awards in New York in June for a speech criticising the president.
A suspected pipe bomb was also discovered at the offices of the actor Robert De Niro in lower Manhattan on Thursday. In his first remarks on the incident, De Niro said in a statement: “I thank God no one’s been hurt, and I thank the brave and resourceful security and law enforcement people for protecting us. There’s something more powerful than bombs, and that’s your vote. People must vote!”
“I thank God no one’s been hurt, and I thank the brave and resourceful security and law enforcement people for protecting us. There’s something more powerful than bombs, and that’s your vote. People must vote!” De Niro said in a statement.
De Niro’s office is in a complex in the trendy Tribeca neighborhood that also includes the restaurant he owns, the Tribeca Grill, an entertainment industry favorite, which opened normally. It also comprises the offices of the Tribeca film festival, which De Niro pioneered as a boost for lower Manhattan after the 9/11 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center just a few blocks south, and in addition used to house Harvey Weinstein’s downtown office, too, on another floor.
US pipe bomb packagesUS pipe bomb packages
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