Estimated read time: 1-2 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
TORONTO (AP) — Authorities in Quebec launched an investigation after envelopes containing a suspicious white powder were found Thursday in the district offices of four Conservative Canadian cabinet ministers. A government official later said the powder sent to one of the ministers has been deemed harmless.
It wasn't immediately clear what the powder was but a senior government official said the material sent to Infrastructure Minister Denis Lebel's office was confirmed as harmless. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly, said the envelope also contained a "threat stating that conservatives will be annihilated."
Lebel's office in the city Roberval was evacuated Thursday morning after an employee found white powder in an envelope. Two employees who came into contact with the powder were quarantined in the office as firefighters analyzed the scene.
Another envelope containing white powder was found in International Development Minister Christian Paradis' office in the town of Thetford Mines. Police spokeswoman Anne Gilbert said the person who came into contact with the substance was taken to the hospital, presumably for testing.
The chief of staff of cabinet minister Maxime Bernier said a third suspicious envelope was found in Bernier's office in Saint-Georges, south of Quebec City. That envelope was placed in a plastic bag and handed over to provincial police. Police wouldn't say if the envelope found in Bernier's office was opened or how they knew it contained a suspicious substance.
An envelope was also sent to the district office of Public Safety Minister Steven Blaney.
Provincial police spokesman Richard Gagne refused to say if written messages were included in any of the three envelopes.
Copyright © The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
