A 56-year-old Florida man faces five federal charges in connection with a sweeping investigation of at least 13 improvised explosive devices addressed to prominent Democrats and their supporters, Department of Justice officials said Friday.
Law enforcement officials identified the man as Cesar Sayoc, who was born in Brooklyn, New York. Records show Sayoc has a criminal history dating back more than two decades, including a 2015 arrest in Broward County, Florida, for petty theft and probation violation.
Sayoc was charged with five federal crimes, including interstate transportation of an explosive, illegal mailing of an explosive and threats against former presidents.
Sayoc was arrested near an auto store in Plantation, Florida. Police examined a white van shrouded in stickers, covered the vehicle with a blue tarp and took it away on the back of a flatbed truck. The stickers included images of President Donald Trump, American flags and what appeared to be logos of the Republican National Committee and CNN, though not all the images were clear.
FBI Director Christopher Wray said a fingerprint recovered from an envelope mailed to U.S. Rep. Maxine Waters matched Sayoc's fingerprint.
Wray said investigators tracked more than a dozen devices mailed to high-profile Democrats and their supporters that all were similar. Each mailed device included six inches of PVC pipe, a small clock, battery, wiring and potentially explosive material designed to give out heat and energy.
"These are not hoax devices," Wray said.
Earlier Friday, Trump applauded the suspect's arrest, calling it "an incredible job" by law enforcement. The bombing attempts were "despicable" and have "no place in our country," Trump said during an event for African-American Republicans at the White House.
“We must never allow political violence take root in America," Trump said, and "I’m committed to doing everything in my power to stop it."
The total number of bombs reached at least 13 Friday after three more suspicious packages were recovered, one in Florida addressed to New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker, another in New York addressed to former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper and a device recovered at Sen. Kamala Harris’ office in Sacramento, California.
Harris’ office says the package was similar to those that have been sent to others. The senator’s office says it was informed that the package was identified at a Sacramento mail facility. The FBI responded to the facility in a South Sacramento neighborhood that’s been blocked off by caution tape.
A package addressed to Clapper was recovered at a Manhattan postal facility. Like some of the previous packages addressed to prominent Democrats, the one found in New York City on Friday had the office of Florida Democratic Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz as the return address, a photo obtained by CBS News showed.
The nation has been on heightened alert in the wake of bomb-like devices addressed to high-profile Democrats and supporters, including former President Barack Obama, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and former Vice President Joe Biden.
Records show that Sayoc has a history of arrests dating back to at least the early 1990s. He also had financial troubles, filing for personal bankruptcy in Florida in 2012 during the Great Recession.
In 2002, Sayoc was charged with threatening to “throw, project, place, or discharge any destructive device," according to online court records from Miami-Dade County.
More recently, Sayoc was arrested in May 2015 after he was accused of stealing a briefcase and a garment bag from Walmart, according to a West Palm Beach Police report.
Sayoc's reported monthly income of $923 after payroll deductions and monthly expenses of $1,070. He collected unemployment compensation in 2009, 2010 and 2012, according to the filing.
The suspicious package intended for Clapper was spotted by a postal worker at the Radio City Station postal facility at around 8:15 a.m. Realizing the package looked like the previous ones found this week, the employee contacted U.S. Postal Inspection Service, and they contacted the NYPD and FBI.
NYPD Bomb Squad officers scanned the package and saw what appeared to be a pipe bomb, similar to the others recovered this week, NYPD Deputy Commissioner for Intelligence and Counterterrorism John Miller said at a Manhattan news conference.
The bomb squad relocated the package in its total containment vessel to the NYPD facility at Rodman's Neck in the Bronx. After being secured there, the package will be sent to the FBI Laboratory in Quantico, Virginia, for analysis, Miller said.
When the package was initially discovered, NYPD closed a Manhattan intersection to traffic and pedestrians. The NYPD told the public to avoid the area near W. 52nd Street between 8th and 9th Avenues as police investigated.
The device addressed to Booker was recovered at a mail sorting distribution center in Opa Locka, Florida, which has drawn intense investigative interest in recent days, as authorities believe that many of the suspected explosive devices passed through the state, a law enforcement official said.
Investigators are continuing to review mail streams in and out of Florida, attempting to pinpoint locations where the parcels may have originated, said the official who is not authorized to comment publicly.
Sen. Booker, a likely presidential contender in 2020, had no public events scheduled Friday. When contacted for comment, his office directed calls to law enforcement, citing the ongoing investigation.
On Wednesday, after news of the initial wave of packages broke, Booker, 49, tweeted: "These targeted acts of terror are despicable cowardice."
In New York, police have investigated multiple unattended packages in recent days and are urging the public to report anything that could be deemed dangerous.
On Thursday, the NYPD Bomb Squad handled multiple unattended packages inside a mall at 10 Columbus Circle before declaring the area safe. Police urged the public to "say something if you see something," in a tweet.
New York Police Department Commissioner James O’Neill said in a news conference earlier Thursday that the devices were not being treated as a hoax, describing them as "suspected explosive devices."
The powder found in packaging in New York addressed to CNN's offices wasn’t a biological weapon, but further testing was being done, O’Neill said. The devices were examined at the FBI lab in Quantico, Virginia.
FBI Assistant Director Bill Sweeney on Thursday said the investigation is nationwide and noted that more devices could be discovered. “It does remain possible that further packages have been or could be mailed," he said. "These devices should be considered dangerous.”
Kevin Barry, a former member of New York Police Department's bomb squad and a former director of the International Association of Bomb Technicians and Investigators, expected the FBI analyses to be focused on both the design and recovery of physical evidence.
Testing would gauge the functionality of the devices, check the type of pipe used and examine the powder to determine whether it is high explosive, low explosive or a chemical substance intended to be dispersed when the devices were triggered, Barry said.
More: Authorities eye Florida in hunt for source of suspicious packages, as security officials worry danger 'not over'
More: Another two potential bombs found: What we know now about the 12 suspicious packages
Contributing: Herb Jackson, Hannan Adely and Phaedra Trethan for the USA TODAY Network
A 56-year-old Florida man faces five federal charges in connection with a sweeping investigation of at least 13 improvised explosive devices addressed to prominent Democrats and their supporters, Department of Justice officials said Friday.
Law enforcement officials identified the man as Cesar Sayoc, who was born in Brooklyn, New York. Records show Sayoc has a criminal history dating back more than two decades, including a 2015 arrest in Broward County, Florida, for petty theft and probation violation.
Sayoc was charged with five federal crimes, including interstate transportation of an explosive, illegal mailing of an explosive and threats against former presidents.
Sayoc was arrested near an auto store in Plantation, Florida. Police examined a white van shrouded in stickers, covered the vehicle with a blue tarp and took it away on the back of a flatbed truck. The stickers included images of President Donald Trump, American flags and what appeared to be logos of the Republican National Committee and CNN, though not all the images were clear.
FBI Director Christopher Wray said a fingerprint recovered from an envelope mailed to U.S. Rep. Maxine Waters matched Sayoc's fingerprint.
Wray said investigators tracked more than a dozen devices mailed to high-profile Democrats and their supporters that all were similar. Each mailed device included six inches of PVC pipe, a small clock, battery, wiring and potentially explosive material designed to give out heat and energy.
"These are not hoax devices," Wray said.
Earlier Friday, Trump applauded the suspect's arrest, calling it "an incredible job" by law enforcement. The bombing attempts were "despicable" and have "no place in our country," Trump said during an event for African-American Republicans at the White House.
“We must never allow political violence take root in America," Trump said, and "I’m committed to doing everything in my power to stop it."
The total number of bombs reached at least 13 Friday after three more suspicious packages were recovered, one in Florida addressed to New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker, another in New York addressed to former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper and a device recovered at Sen. Kamala Harris’ office in Sacramento, California.
Harris’ office says the package was similar to those that have been sent to others. The senator’s office says it was informed that the package was identified at a Sacramento mail facility. The FBI responded to the facility in a South Sacramento neighborhood that’s been blocked off by caution tape.
A package addressed to Clapper was recovered at a Manhattan postal facility. Like some of the previous packages addressed to prominent Democrats, the one found in New York City on Friday had the office of Florida Democratic Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz as the return address, a photo obtained by CBS News showed.
The nation has been on heightened alert in the wake of bomb-like devices addressed to high-profile Democrats and supporters, including former President Barack Obama, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and former Vice President Joe Biden.
Records show that Sayoc has a history of arrests dating back to at least the early 1990s. He also had financial troubles, filing for personal bankruptcy in Florida in 2012 during the Great Recession.
In 2002, Sayoc was charged with threatening to “throw, project, place, or discharge any destructive device," according to online court records from Miami-Dade County.
More recently, Sayoc was arrested in May 2015 after he was accused of stealing a briefcase and a garment bag from Walmart, according to a West Palm Beach Police report.
Sayoc's reported monthly income of $923 after payroll deductions and monthly expenses of $1,070. He collected unemployment compensation in 2009, 2010 and 2012, according to the filing.
The suspicious package intended for Clapper was spotted by a postal worker at the Radio City Station postal facility at around 8:15 a.m. Realizing the package looked like the previous ones found this week, the employee contacted U.S. Postal Inspection Service, and they contacted the NYPD and FBI.
NYPD Bomb Squad officers scanned the package and saw what appeared to be a pipe bomb, similar to the others recovered this week, NYPD Deputy Commissioner for Intelligence and Counterterrorism John Miller said at a Manhattan news conference.
The bomb squad relocated the package in its total containment vessel to the NYPD facility at Rodman's Neck in the Bronx. After being secured there, the package will be sent to the FBI Laboratory in Quantico, Virginia, for analysis, Miller said.
When the package was initially discovered, NYPD closed a Manhattan intersection to traffic and pedestrians. The NYPD told the public to avoid the area near W. 52nd Street between 8th and 9th Avenues as police investigated.
The device addressed to Booker was recovered at a mail sorting distribution center in Opa Locka, Florida, which has drawn intense investigative interest in recent days, as authorities believe that many of the suspected explosive devices passed through the state, a law enforcement official said.
Investigators are continuing to review mail streams in and out of Florida, attempting to pinpoint locations where the parcels may have originated, said the official who is not authorized to comment publicly.
Sen. Booker, a likely presidential contender in 2020, had no public events scheduled Friday. When contacted for comment, his office directed calls to law enforcement, citing the ongoing investigation.
On Wednesday, after news of the initial wave of packages broke, Booker, 49, tweeted: "These targeted acts of terror are despicable cowardice."
In New York, police have investigated multiple unattended packages in recent days and are urging the public to report anything that could be deemed dangerous.
On Thursday, the NYPD Bomb Squad handled multiple unattended packages inside a mall at 10 Columbus Circle before declaring the area safe. Police urged the public to "say something if you see something," in a tweet.
New York Police Department Commissioner James O’Neill said in a news conference earlier Thursday that the devices were not being treated as a hoax, describing them as "suspected explosive devices."
The powder found in packaging in New York addressed to CNN's offices wasn’t a biological weapon, but further testing was being done, O’Neill said. The devices were examined at the FBI lab in Quantico, Virginia.
FBI Assistant Director Bill Sweeney on Thursday said the investigation is nationwide and noted that more devices could be discovered. “It does remain possible that further packages have been or could be mailed," he said. "These devices should be considered dangerous.”
Kevin Barry, a former member of New York Police Department's bomb squad and a former director of the International Association of Bomb Technicians and Investigators, expected the FBI analyses to be focused on both the design and recovery of physical evidence.
Testing would gauge the functionality of the devices, check the type of pipe used and examine the powder to determine whether it is high explosive, low explosive or a chemical substance intended to be dispersed when the devices were triggered, Barry said.
More: Authorities eye Florida in hunt for source of suspicious packages, as security officials worry danger 'not over'
More: Another two potential bombs found: What we know now about the 12 suspicious packages
Contributing: Herb Jackson, Hannan Adely and Phaedra Trethan for the USA TODAY Network
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