The Federal Bureau of Investigations is “aware” of “numerous” hoax bomb threats sent to various state legislatures and secretaries of state around the country on Wednesday.
“The FBI is aware of the numerous hoax incidents wherein a bomb threat at a state Capitol building is made,” the FBI said in a statement obtained by ABC News. “The FBI takes hoax threats very seriously because it puts innocent people at risk.”
The statement went on to say that investigators were continuing to look into the situation.
“While we have no information to indicate a specific and credible threat, we will continue to work with our local, state, and federal law enforcement partners to gather, share, and act upon threat information as it comes to our attention,” the statement said.
The hoaxes were sent via a mass email that had the subject line “Explosives inside of your State Capitol.”
ABC News obtained one of the emails, which said, “I placed multiple explosives inside of your State Capitol. The explosives [sic] are well hidden inside and they will go off in a few hours. I will make sure you all end up dead.”
Buildings that were targeted by the bomb threats included those in Minnesota, Kentucky, Maine, Missouri, Oregon, Nebraska, Rhode Island, Montana, Oklahoma, New York, South Dakota, and South Carolina.
“Whether it’s our U.S. Capitol or our state capitols, the people’s work will not be held hostage by violent behavior or threats,” Kentucky Secretary of State Michael Adams said in a statement.
Officials are continuing to investigate but believe that the threat came from overseas.