Mail services go on high alert
U.S. postal inspectors side-by-side with FBI
Package delivery services say they are on the lookout for suspicious packages as the U.S. Postal Inspection Service works with the FBI to try to determine who sent pipe bombs to prominent Democrats. The packages sent to Democratic leaders and supporters were delivered both through the mail and by private courier, authorities say. “Any reports of suspicious mailings are taken very seriously, as they may impact the safety of postal employees and disrupt the processing of mail,” the USPS said in a statement. The Postal Inspection Service has organized response teams nationwide for investigating suspicious parcels through its Dangerous Mail Investigations Program. “DMI Inspectors are trained to recognize the common characteristics of suspicious mail and are highly proficient in the use of state-of-the-art equipment to include portable X-ray machines,” the statement said. The Postal Inspection Service declined to describe its investigative procedures in order to prevent attempts to compromise their effectiveness. But a poster it uses for employees and customers points out common red flags on packages, including no return address, excessive postage or tape, strange odors, oily stains or crystallization on the wrapper. Matthew O’Connor, a UPS spokesman, said that although none of the bombs were sent using its service, it has “multiple” layers of security, and its employees are trained to identify suspicious packages. Bennett Bernstein, operations manager at Boston-based RTD Logistics, said its drivers know who they’re picking up packages from and delivering them to, and are trained by the Transportation Security Administration to look for red flags, from more subtle ones like multiple stamps and no return address, to the most obvious ones, like leaking or ticking packages. “Even before this, all of our drivers were on heightened alert to contact dispatch if they suspect anything,” Bernstein said. “If it looks like a duck and quacks like a duck, it probably is one.”