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What we know about the 13 pipe bombs sent to prominent Democrats and Trump critics

October 26, 2018 at 8:52 p.m. EDT
A package addressed to former CIA director John Brennan is shown beside an explosive device that was sent to CNN's New York office. (ABC News via AP) (AP)

Packages containing pipe bombs were sent to several prominent figures across the country this week, all of whom have criticized President Trump, sparking a sprawling nationwide investigation.

Authorities on Friday arrested Cesar Sayoc in connection with those incidents. Sayoc, 56, was previously known to law enforcement officials and had been arrested nearly a dozen times in Florida, including a 2002 arrest for making a bomb threat.

All the packages were intercepted before reaching their intended targets and did not detonate. Here’s what we know about the 13 devices.

MONDAY, OCT. 22

George Soros (one device) | An employee of billionaire investor and philanthropist George Soros found a suspicious package in a mailbox at Soros’s home in New York.

TUESDAY, OCT. 23

Bill and Hillary Clinton (one device) | Secret Service personnel intercepted a pipe bomb addressed to the residence of former secretary of state Hillary Clinton and former president Bill Clinton in Chappaqua, N.Y. The “potential explosive device” did not pose a threat to the Clintons, the agency said.

Authorities investigate possible Florida connection

WEDNESDAY, OCT. 24

Barack Obama (one device) | Secret Service personnel intercepted a bomb addressed to the residence of former president Barack Obama in Northwest Washington. It was similar to the package addressed to the Clintons, and like that other device, there was no accompanying message, officials said.

CNN and John Brennan (one device) | A pipe bomb was found in the CNN mailroom at the Time Warner Center in New York on Wednesday morning, triggering an hours-long evacuation. The package was addressed to former CIA director John Brennan, who works as an analyst for NBC News and MSNBC, not CNN. Law enforcement officials said the device appeared to be similar to the other recovered devices.

Debbie Wasserman Schultz and Eric Holder (one device) | A suspicious package was sent to the Florida office of Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-Fla.). It was addressed to former attorney general Eric H. Holder, who worked for the Obama administration, but had the wrong address and was delivered to the congresswoman’s office because she was listed as the sender on the package’s return address.

Maxine Waters (two devices) | Two packages addressed to Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Calif.) were recovered by authorities, the FBI said Wednesday night — one in Los Angeles and another in Washington. They were “similar in appearance” to the other devices, the agency said.

Social media account tied to mail-bomb suspect singled out Democrats

THURSDAY, OCT. 25

Robert De Niro (one device) | Around 5 a.m., security personnel working for De Niro’s film company, Tribeca Productions, discovered a suspicious package that police said “was similar to explosive packages that has been publicized.” The package was transported to Rodman’s Neck, a peninsula in the Bronx where the New York Police Department explodes bombs, the department said.

Joe Biden (two devices) | Investigators at two mail facilities in Delaware found packages addressed to the former vice president. One used his full name, Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. Both were similar to others that had been sent this week.

Who is Cesar Sayoc? What we know about the suspected mail bomber arrested in Florida.

FRIDAY, OCT. 26

Cory Booker (one device) | The FBI said it found a potential explosive device in Florida, addressed to Sen. Booker, a New Jersey Democrat. The package was similar to others sent to public figures.

James Clapper (one device) | Moments after the FBI announced that it had intercepted a suspicious package addressed to Booker, police in New York intercepted a similar package addressed to Clapper, President Obama’s former director of national intelligence. A law enforcement official said the package was addressed to Clapper at CNN, where he is a contributor, and was found at a mail sorting facility in New York.

Kamala Harris (one device) | A suspicious package addressed to Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) was found Friday at a Sacramento mail facility is also suspected to have been sent by Sayoc, a law enforcement official said. An aide to Harris said her office was told the package was similar to the others that had been sent to public figures. The discovery was announced after Sayoc was arrested.

Tom Steyer (one device) | Steyer, a major Democratic donor, said Friday that a suspicious package mailed to him was intercepted in California. This was not among the 13 listed in the federal complaint, but it is believed to have been sent by Sayoc, according to a law enforcement official. The official said this accusation would be added to the 13 devices Sayoc is already charged with sending.

Authorities continue to investigate more suspicious packages containing explosives that seem to target prominent liberal figures and Democratic politicians. (Video: Joyce Koh, Blair Guild/The Washington Post)

Read more:

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Homemade bombs sent to Obama, Clinton, CNN offices and Holder, officials say

Suspected explosives sent to Biden, De Niro as investigation into pipe bombs expands to 10 packages