Several presidents were elected Donald Trumpis planned Candidates for the Cabinet of Ministers and those appointed to the administration A spokesman for Trump’s transition team said Tuesday night and Wednesday morning they were the subject of bomb threats and “provocative” attacks.
Candidates and appointees were “targeted with violent, un-American threats to their lives and those living with them. These attacks ranged from bomb threats to ‘intimidation.’flutter,'” transition spokeswoman Caroline Leavitt said in a statement.
Swatting is when a false call is made to the police, pretending that a life-threatening situation is occurring. It is designed to attract SWAT teams to a location and can lead to fatal results.
Three top law enforcement officials briefed on the incident, which involved multiple Trump allies, told NBC News that these were not credible threats. Officials said no device or physical threats were found and some threats may have come in via social media. The threats did not include Secret Service agents such as Trump or Vice President-elect JD Vance.
The FBI said in a statement that it is “aware of multiple bomb threats targeting incoming administration candidates and appointees, and we are working with our law enforcement partners. We take all potential threats seriously and, as always, urge members of the public to immediately report anything suspicious to law enforcement.”
Trump’s statement did not specify who or how many officials were defrauded, but said “law enforcement and other authorities acted quickly to ensure the safety of those targeted.”
“President Trump and the entire transition team are grateful for their swift action,” the statement said.
Trump’s UN ambassador candidate Elise Stefanik’s office said she was one of the targets.
The office said in a statement that Stefanik, her husband and three-year-old son were driving home from Washington, D.C., “when they received word that a bomb had been placed at their residence. New York State, County law enforcement and the U.S. Capitol Police responded immediately with the utmost professionalism.”
Former Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., who last week withdrew his offer Being Trump’s attorney general confirmed that he was among the targets of the bomb threat. The bomb squad responded to the threat by calling his home in Florida. A bomb-sniffing dog was initially brought to the home by the sheriff, but to no avail, prompting the call of the bomb squad.
The Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office said “no device was found. A search of the nearby area was also conducted and returned negative results.”
Gaetz said he was not home at the time, but a family member was. Gaetz was the first to report the details of the threat Punchbowl News.
Leavitt said in a statement that they will not be deterred by threats. “President Trump will not be deterred by dangerous acts of intimidation and violence like ours,” he said.
The same tactic has been used in the past against some of Trump’s opponents, including the judge presiding over his civil fraud trial in New York, the judge presiding over Trump’s federal election meddling case, and the prosecutor who brought that case. , special prosecutor Jack Smith, as well as the district attorney’s offices in Georgia and New York, filed criminal charges against Trump.
Nnamdi Egwuonwu, Ryan Nobles and John Filippelli contributed.