A package of crystal meth from Europe shut down a board of elections office in New York for hours this week.
The Dutchess County Board of Elections office shut down for three hours on Monday, when officials discovered a suspicious package from Europe, sparking a Hazmat team to respond to the office and investigate.
“It came in through UPS from Greece. Prior to Greece, the inner envelope had been around a few other countries as well including France and then UPS’ed to the Dutchess County Board of Elections,” Republican Elections Commissioner Erik Haight told the MidHudson News. “The FBI is involved and I know they will be working with the Dutchess County Sheriff’s Office and State Police to determine who sent this to us and why.”
A bipartisan team of BOE employees flagged the suspicious package to commissioners, with the team then donning Personal Protective Equipment to further investigate the package before calling law enforcement. The Dutchess County HAZMAT team ultimately responded to the scene, according to a press release from the county’s board of elections.
A voter arrives at a polling location. (REUTERS/Joel Page)
“Dutchess County HAZMAT personnel, under the observation of the bi-partisan Elections Commissioners, examined the suspicious package. The substance was carefully removed from the envelope and tested with advanced chemical and gaseous identification equipment. HAZMAT personnel determined that the material was methamphetamine or more commonly known as ‘crystal meth,’” the press release explained.
Staffers who came into contact with the package have not “reported any symptoms,” the press released stated.
Entrance to office building home to the Dutches County Board of Elections office. (Google Maps)
The county commissioners celebrated that even though the office shut down for three hours, it did not disrupt “a single voter’s right to vote or harm any of our hardworking staff members.”
“The cowards that sent this dangerous chemical to our office failed in disrupting a single voter’s right to vote or harm any of our hardworking staff members. These bad actors may hide in the shadows and endeavor to strike fear, but we will remain vigilant and fulfill our oaths of office by delivering free and fair elections to the good voters of Dutchess County,” Democratic Commissioner Hannah Black said in the press release.
People arrive to cast their vote during the early voting. (Christopher Mark Juhn/Anadolu via Getty Images)
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“I join my colleague Commissioner Black in commending our staff and am deeply appreciative of all law enforcement, the City of Poughkeepsie FD and emergency personnel that were critical in assisting us through this stressful and dangerous ordeal,” Haight added.
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The sheriff’s office took possession of the package and is working in conjunction with the FBI and State Police to investigate. The sheriff’s office told Fox Digital on Tuesday that there are no updates to share on the investigation at this time.