Trump Transition Says Cabinet Picks, Appointees Were Targeted by Bomb Threats, Swatting Attacks

By  JILL COLVIN

NEW YORK (AP) — Several of President-elect Donald Trump ‘s Cabinet picks and appointees have been targeted by bomb threats and “swatting attacks,” Trump’s transition said Wednesday.

“Last night and this morning, several of President Trump’s Cabinet nominees and Administration appointees were targeted in violent, unAmerican threats to their lives and those who live with them,” Trump transition spokesperson Karoline Leavitt said in a statement.

She said the attacks “ranged from bomb threats to ‘swatting.’ In response, law enforcement and other authorities acted quickly to ensure the safety of those who were targeted. President Trump and the entire Transition team are grateful for their swift action.”

Swatting entails generating an emergency law enforcement response against a target victim under false pretenses.

The FBI said in a statement that it is “aware of numerous bomb threats and swatting incidents targeting incoming administration nominees and appointees, and we are working with our law enforcement partners. We take all potential threats seriously, and as always, encourage members of the public to immediately report anything they consider suspicious to law enforcement.”

Among those targeted was New York Rep. Elise Stefanik, Trump’s pick to serve as the next ambassador to the United Nations.

Her office said that, Wednesday morning, she, her husband, and their 3-year-old son were driving home from Washington for Thanksgiving when they were informed of a bomb threat to their residence in Saratoga County.

“New York State, County law enforcement, and U.S. Capitol Police responded immediately with the highest levels of professionalism,” her office said in a statement. “We are incredibly appreciative of the extraordinary dedication of law enforcement officers who keep our communities safe 24/7.”

In Florida, meanwhile, the Okaloosa County sheriff’s office said in an advisory posted on Facebook that it “received notification of a bomb threat referencing former Congressman Matt Gaetz’s supposed mailbox at a home in the Niceville area around 9 a.m. this morning.”

While a family member resides at the address, they said “former Congressman Gaetz is NOT a resident. “The mailbox however was cleared and no devices were located. The immediate area was also searched with negative results.”

Gaetz was Trump’s initial pick to serve as attorney general, but he withdrew from consideration amid allegations that he paid women for sex and slept with underage women. Gaetz has vehemently denied any wrongdoing and said last year that a Justice Department investigation into sex trafficking allegations involving underage girls had ended with no federal charges against him.

The threats follow a political campaign marked by unusual violence. In July, a gunman opened fire at a Trump rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, grazing the then-candidate in the ear with a bullet and killing one of his supporters. The U.S. Secret Service later thwarted a subsequent assassination attempt at Trump’s West Palm Beach, Florida, golf course when an agent spotted the barrel of a gun poking through a perimeter fence while Trump was golfing.

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Associated Press writers Alanna Durkin Richer and Eric Tucker contributed to this report from Washington.