Arizona Supreme Court evacuated due to 'homemade explosive substance' found in mail room

Arizona’s Supreme Court was evacuated on Monday after a suspicious package that was found to contain explosive material was discovered in the building’s mail room. The package was discovered at around 8 am, and other government buildings in the area were evacuated as well.

The Arizona Department of Public Safety said that the package contained multiple vials, two of which tested positive for an "unspecified homemade explosive substance," per the New York Post. The Arizona State Courts building, Department of Education, Attorney General’s Office, and Department of Administration were also evacuated as a precautionary measure.

The buildings remained closed throughout the morning and early afternoon as authorities removed the package from the building. Per AZ Family, a technician wearing protective gear was spotted carrying the package out of the Arizona Supreme Court Building and placing it inside a Mobile Explosive Containment Vessel. The vessel was escorted away by a police motorcade for detonation.

No injuries were reported, and the building was cleared for reentry at around 3:30 pm. Officials have not yet revealed when the package was delivered or where it was sent from.

Alberto Rodriguez, communications director with the Arizona Supreme Court, said, "When they notified all staff that we needed to evacuate, I think there was a lot of questions that we didn’t necessarily know about, speaking as a general employee of the Supreme Court. We’re just following directions."

"I don’t want to speak on behalf of any of my colleagues, but personally, it’s just one of those things where it doesn’t feel good when it gets to your workplace. You hear about it all the time, but it’s unfortunate that it reached the Arizona Supreme Court, where we had to have this evacuation," he added.