Kentucky, several other states were targeted in bomb threats. What we know
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The Kentucky Capitol was evacuated for several hours Wednesday morning after statehouses around the nation received bomb threats.
At 7:44 a.m., government officials across the country received a mass email that bombs had been placed in all of their state capitols. The email, obtained by The Courier Journal from the Kentucky Secretary of State's Office, said directly there were explosives in the capitols that would "go off in a few hours" and that the email sender had intentions to "make sure you all end up dead."
The Kentucky State Police said in a statement Wednesday afternoon that the bomb threat was "found to be unsubstantiated" after investigators conducted a "thorough search of the Capitol Building and grounds." State troopers were initially contacted by the Secretary of State's Office around 8:30 a.m.
An investigation is ongoing and being led by the Lexington FBI Joint Terrorism Task Force, KSP added.
The Kentucky Capitol building was shut down for approximately three hours, but the annex building remained open.
A spokesperson with the Secretary of State's office said the Capitol reopened around noon.
Grateful to our first responders for their courage and promptness in getting us back into the Capitol. The people’s work continues.
— Michael Adams, KY Secretary of State (@KYSecState) January 3, 2024
Secretary of State Michael Adams confirmed with The Courier Journal that his office had received the threat. During the evacuation, Gov. Andy Beshear posted on X, formerly known as Twitter, that everyone was safe and the threat was under investigation.
While everyone is safe, KSP has asked everyone to evacuate the state Capitol and is investigating a threat received by the Secretary of State’s Office. We are aware of similar threats made to other offices across the country. 1/2
— Governor Andy Beshear (@GovAndyBeshear) January 3, 2024
An email was sent to staff members at the Kentucky Legislative Research Commission about 9:20 a.m. asking anyone working in the Capitol to leave and go to the annex, which is adjacent to the main building.
At approximately 10 a.m., police were seen going into the main building. Meanwhile, some people waited in their cars in the parking lot.
Meanwhile, state lawmakers were attending ethics training in the annex.
The statehouse buildings in Georgia, Mississippi, Connecticut and Michigan received similar threats.
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Reporters Eleanor McCrary, Rebecca Grapevine and Stephanie Kuzydym contributed to this story.
This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Bomb threat at Kentucky Capitol: All clear given following evacuation
