Three Explosive Devices Sent to Clintons, Obama and CNN Offices

Explosive devices were sent to former President Barack Obama and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, as well as to CNN’s offices in New York, sparking an intense investigation on Wednesday into whether a bomber is going after targets that have often been the subject of right-wing ire.

A law enforcement official said the three devices were similar to one found Monday at the home of George Soros, the billionaire philanthropist and liberal donor.

None of the devices harmed anyone. Law enforcement officials said they were investigating whether all the devices were sent by the same person or persons.

Mrs. Clinton, Mr. Obama, Mr. Soros and CNN have all figured prominently in conservative political attacks — many of which have been led by President Trump. He has often referred to major news organizations as “the enemy of the people,” and has had a particular animus for CNN.

The device sent to CNN was contained in a manila envelope addressed to John Brennan, who was the C.I.A. director in the Obama administration and is a harsh critic of Mr. Trump. The president revoked Mr. Brennan’s security clearance in what was seen as an act of retribution.

The return address bore the name of Debbie Wasserman Schultz, a Florida congresswoman who formerly headed the Democratic National Committee.

In a statement, the White House condemned “the attempted violent attacks.”

“These terrorizing acts are despicable, and anyone responsible will be held accountable to the fullest extent of the law,” the statement said. “The United States Secret Service and other law enforcement agencies are investigating and will take all appropriate actions to protect anyone threatened by these cowards.”

The first inkling that there might be a serial bomber came Wednesday morning when the Secret Service revealed that it had “intercepted two suspicious packages addressed to Secret Service protectees,” who were Mrs. Clinton and Mr. Obama.

The device addressed to Mrs. Clinton in Westchester County, north of New York City, was found late on Tuesday by a Secret Service employee who screens mail for her, the statement said. The package addressed to Mr. Obama was intercepted early on Wednesday by Secret Service personnel in Washington.

Shortly after the Secret Service made that announcement, the Time Warner Center, a major office complex in Midtown Manhattan, was evacuated after a similar device was discovered to have been sent to CNN’s offices there.

A senior law enforcement official in New York, describing the device sent to CNN, said the device intercepted in CNN’s basement mailroom resembled the others: “Same package. Same device.”

The statement from the Secret Service also said: “The packages were immediately identified during routine mail screening procedures as potential explosive devices and were appropriately handled as such. The protectees did not receive the packages nor were they at risk of receiving them.”

The agency also said it had “initiated a full scope criminal investigation that will leverage all available federal, state, and local resources to determine the source of the packages and identify those responsible.”

Mr. Soros’s home is in Katonah, a hamlet in Westchester. That device was constructed from a length of pipe about six inches long filled with explosive powder, and it was “proactively detonated” by bomb squad technicians, according to one of the officials, all of whom were briefed on the investigation.