*By Carlo Versano* Federal authorities have arrested Cesar Sayoc, Jr., a 56-year-old Florida resident, in connection with a dozen packages containing likely explosives sent to prominent figures and institutions around the U.S. over the past week. Sayoc lives in Aventura and has a criminal record, according to the Broward County Sheriff. President Trump, speaking at a summit for young black Republicans, commended law enforcement for the arrest and called the mail bombing attempts "terrorizing acts." "We must never allow political violence to take root in America," Trump said. "I'm committed to doing everything in my power as president to stop it and stop it now." Chopper video from Miami local news stations showed police outside an auto-parts store in Plantation, Fla. FBI agents covered a white van with a tarp before loading it onto a flatbed truck. Two additional suspicious packages sent to prominent Democrats were intercepted earlier Friday, only hours before the manhunt appeared to close in on a suspect for the attempted mail bombings now being described as a domestic terrorism. Reporting from the distribution center where investigators are focused in Opa-Locka, Fla., Cheddar's J.D. Durkin said the escalation of political violence is expected to play a role in key midterm races such as in Florida's 26th district, where Democratic challenger Debbie Mucarsel-Powell urged Republican leaders to denounce what she called "acts of terrorism." The FBI confirmed Friday morning that authorities intercepted a package addressed to Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ) that was similar in appearance to the pipe-bomb parcels sent this week to other prominent Democrats. Moments later, CNN reported a package addressed to James Clapper, the former director of National Intelligence under President Obama, was found at a postal facility in Manhattan, N.Y. That package was addressed to Clapper care of CNN's New York office ー much like the device sent to CNN's mailroom was addressed to John Brennan, a former director of the CIA. Speaking to Durkin from Miami-Dade County, Mucarsel-Powell, who is running neck-and-neck with incumbent Rep. Carlos Curbelo, said, "This is a very important time for us to unite regardless of party." On Thursday night, Homeland Security Sec. Kristjen Nielsen said in an interview that authorities had zeroed in on Florida as a region of interest in the manhunt. At least some of the packages were reportedly processed at the sprawling mail sorting facility in Opa-Locka, about 10 miles north of Miami. While all the packages sent this week were intended for people or entities that are high-profile critics of President Trump, authorities have not yet said definitively that they have determined a motive. Earlier Friday, Trump continued to attack CNN in tweets and lamented that the "'Bomb' stuff" ー an attempted domestic terror attack on his political critics ー has slowed the momentum of Republicans going into the election.

Share:
More In Politics
Why Putin Seems So Focused on Invading Ukraine
Russian President Vladimir Putin openly invaded the neighboring country of Ukraine on Thursday following weeks of overtures and discussions on keeping an incursion from happening. David Salvo, the deputy director for the Alliance for Securing Democracy, joined Cheddar to go into the Russian leader's motivations. "What I'm sure he understands is that his invasion of Ukraine in 2014 probably ended the discussion of Ukraine joining NATO, even if publicly we won't admit that, that's just the reality. And I'm sure that President Putin understands that," he said, noting that Putin could be using the taking of Ukraine territory as leverage to gain more security concessions from the West.
U.S. Warns Banks to Prepare for Potential Cyberattacks
Following Russia's incursion into Ukraine, the U.S. is warning businesses and major banks to brace themselves for cyberattacks. Lester Munson, a senior fellow at the National Security Institute, joined Cheddar News to break down what this means for financial institutions “So we need to be concerned about not just intentional Russian hacks against American entities but also what Russia is doing in Ukraine. Those things can impact us as well," he said
What Investors Could Prepare for Amid Russian Invasion of Ukraine
After weeks of talks and posturing in hopes of staving off an attack, Russia invaded Ukraine on Thursday, an incident that has already impacted the global economy, including the U.S.. Jason McMann, head of geopolitical risk analysis for Morning Consult, joined Cheddar’s Closing Bell to break down what investors might do to prepare themselves as the crisis continues. "I think there are a few things that we have our eye on over at Morning Consult that could cause the situation to become a bit more severe or unstable as far as market outcomes would be concerned," McMann said. "One of those things would be if the U.S. and the EU kind of moved in concerted fashion to block Russia from the SWIFT transaction system. So, I would say that's one thing that would be worth keeping an eye on."
Load More