FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. _ Reports of terrorist threats in the form of suspicious packages sent to Democratic politicians, a prominent investor and a media company grew Wednesday to eight. And that was just by 2 p.m. Eastern time.
Those who received packages that the FBI and local law enforcement were investigating included U.S. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, whose Sunrise, Fla., office address was used on at least one package's return address label.
There were no reports of injuries.
Later Wednesday afternoon, Aventura police said they have evacuated city hall at 19200 W. Country Club Dr., where, along with municipal officials and police, Wasserman Schultz has an office.
"We are working a suspicious package," said Aventura Police Sgt. Chris Goranitis said. "We're waiting for the (Miami-Dade Police) bomb squad."
President Donald Trump said Wednesday, before a meeting about opioids at the White House, "The full weight of our government is being deployed to conduct this investigation and bring those responsible for these despicable acts to justice. This egregious conduct is abhorrent to everything we hold dear and sacred as Americans. ... We're extremely angry, upset, unhappy about what we witnessed this morning. And we will get to the bottom of it."
A package was discovered Wednesday morning at Wasserman Schultz's Sunrise office in a corporate park, prompting the Broward Sheriff Office's bomb squad to respond along with its robot.
"It was a package found at the building," said Sunrise Police Officer Chris Piper. "It wasn't necessarily addressed to Debbie Wasserman Schultz."
The congresswoman was scheduled to be about 35 miles south in Miami-Dade County, at the Coral Gables Women's Club.
She was to appear with other elected officials at a fundraising luncheon for Donna Shalala, former U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services and former president of the University of Miami. Shalala is a candidate for Congress.
The bomb squad from the sheriff's office was at Wasserman Schultz's office, at 777 Sawgrass Corporate Parkway in Sunrise, to secure the building.
Special agents from the FBI in Miami were also at the scene, working with police and deputies, an FBI spokesman said.
Piper had to hang up before he could provide additional information about the situation unfolding at 11:15 a.m. It was a morning when suspicious packages were also being investigated that had been sent to the New York City offices of CNN and the upstate New York homes of former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and former President Bill Clinton and investor George Soros, as well as the Washington, D.C., home of former President Barack Obama. Also targeted: former U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder, who served in the Obama administration, and, according to CNN, U.S. Rep. Maxine Waters of California.
New York officials spoke during a televised news conference, when Gov. Andrew Cuomo said a suspicious device was also received at his Manhattan office.
New York Police Commissioner James O'Neill said that an envelope sent to CNN contained white powder and "appeared to be live.
"We've seen this before," O'Neill said. "We've seen worse. And we will not be intimidated and will bring these perpetrators to justice."
A complete description of what kind of packages or devices sent to all the recipients have not been provided by authorities. Police investigating some of the incidents said the evidence would be sent to the FBI labs in Virginia for analysis.
John Miller, the New York Police Department's deputy commissioner of intelligence and counterterrorism, described some of the devices as pipe bombs.
CNN reported that a suspicious package sent to former U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder had the wrong address and that Wasserman Schultz's Sunrise office was the return address. Her Sunrise office address was also on the return label affixed to the packages sent to Clinton and Obama, the network said.
The network posted on Twitter a photograph of the package received at the Time Warner Center where its New York City officers are.
The return address was for Wasserman Schultz's Sunrise office, and her name was misspelled. It was addressed to a "John Brenan."
John Brennan, spelled with three 'n's, is a former director of the Central Intelligence Agency who served during the Obama administration. The package was taken to a New York Police Department site in the Bronx.
Sunrise police said on Twitter at noon that "there have been no reports of any other incidents or suspicious packages at any other venues within Sunrise." The city is also home to Sawgrass Mills outlet mall, one of the top tourist attractions in the state, after the Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando.
It was business as usual for most employees who work at the same corporate park where Wasserman Schultz has her office.
Helena Krotenberg works in the building right next door and was taking the situation in stride, saying she's getting used to all the drama these days.
"It's just like another day at work," said Krotenberg. "One more thing to inconvenience everyone. They have to block the street so everyone has to drive longer to get around. And the police have to stand in the hot sun."
Sunrise Mayor Mike Ryan thanked federal and state and local police agencies for their quick and coordinated response and for "working so hard to protect our local community.
"I hope that the perpetrators of these reprehensible acts of terrorism across our nation, which have put our communities and first responders at risk, are brought to justice and that no one is injured or killed," Ryan said.
Also happening in South Florida Wednesday will be the final debate between Republican Ron DeSantis and Democrat Andrew Gillum, who want to become Florida's next governor.
The 7 p.m. debate is scheduled to be held at the Davie campus of Broward College and will be televised live on WFOR-Ch. 4 in Miami-Dade and Broward Counties and in Palm Beach County on WPBF-Ch. 25.
Terrie Rizzo, chairwoman of the Florida Democratic Party, urged everyone to "tone it down" in the next two weeks before the Nov. 6 election.
"This kind of targeted hate and violence has no place in our country and will not be tolerated," Rizzo said. "This isn't about politics, this is about national security and our number one concern is the safety of Congresswoman Wasserman Schultz and first responders called to these scenes. Unfortunately, we have seen some candidates for office use highly divisive and toxic rhetoric during this cycle."
Trump has been criticized by opponents for making divisive and offensive comments, and on Oct. 18, he praised a Montana congressman who pleaded guilty to misdemeanor assault after body slamming a reporter.
Also in his remarks from the White House Wednesday, Trump said, "I just want to tell you in these times, we have to unify. We have to come together and send one very clear, strong, unmistakable message that acts or threats of political violence of any kind have no place in the United States of America."
Mitch Ceasar, former chair of the Broward Democratic Party, said it was not an accident that all the packages were sent to high-level Democrats a couple of weeks before the midterm elections.
"This is symptomatic of the toxic environment that we live in today," he said. "I have to lay the blame on President Trump, who continually attacks women, Hispanics, African-Americans, folks in the gay and lesbian community and any other group he doesn't agree with. If we want to make America great again, let's bring back civility and decency."
Davie Police Major Dale Engle said about law enforcement preparations at the venue, "We're doing everything the same as we do for every other event like this. We take every one of them seriously. We'll make sure it's a safe environment for everybody who attends."
He declined to describe details of the operation, "for security reasons."
Dean Ridings, president of the Florida Press Association, said organizers of the debate are prepared for any potential security threats.
"We already have security in place," Ridings said. "Considering this is a high-level debate, we wanted to make sure we were prepared with good security measures. We will continue to be vigilant."
U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., said on Twitter, "An attack on an American who happens to be a Democrat, Republican or Independent is an attack on America. The terrorist behind this will soon find out that while a free people have politics that are conflictive. If you try to kill any of us you will have to face all of us."
