(NEW YORK) — A viral TikTok trend has sparked a rash of car thefts in cities across the U.S.
The TikTok videos demonstrate how a person can start a car without a key by using only a screwdriver and a USB phone charger to hot-wire automobiles, with some Kia and Hyundai models particularly vulnerable.
In Cook County, Illinois, which includes Chicago, the state’s most populous city, local authorities say they’ve seen a 767% increase in Kia and Hyundai car thefts since 2021. Since July 1, the county has received 642 reported Kia and Hyndai vehicle thefts, a dramatic rise from last year’s 74 reported thefts.
“This is an extremely concerning trend and the public needs to know so they can be vigilant in protecting themselves,” Cook County Sheriff Thomas J. Dart said in a statement.
The hack only works on cars with keys that don’t have engine immobilizers, a type of anti-theft technology that uses a computer chip to help an engine recognize a corresponding key.
Authorities are blaming a social media challenge for an alarming rise in car thefts.
Hyundai told Good Morning America the TikTok videos target Hyundai models that were made before November 2021 and the automaker plans to roll out security kits for those models starting in October.
In a statement, the company said it will work with police departments to “make steering wheel locks available for affected Hyundai owners.”
Police in Park Forest, Illinois, about 35 miles south of Chicago, said in a social media post that the cars most likely affected are select 2011-2021 Kia and 2015-2021 Hyundai models.
“Vehicles in those model years that are not equipped with a push-button start are more easily started without a key (hotwired) than cars from other manufacturers,” the department said in a July 30 Facebook post.
Some Kia and Hyundai owners have since filed a class-action lawsuit in Missouri and Kansas, as reported by ABC affiliate KMBC.
To prevent a car theft, the National Insurance Crime Bureau recommends using visible or audible devices, such as steering wheel locks, brake locks, wheel locks, steering column collars, audible alarms and theft deterrent decals as part of a multi-pronged approach to discourage would-be thieves. Law enforcement officials are also reminding drivers to park in well-lit areas and public locations.
(NEW YORK) — When Katie Quinonez, the executive director of an abortion clinic in West Virginia, saw the Supreme Court decision that overturned the federal guarantee of the right to an abortion, the first word she uttered was an obscenity.
The nonprofit Women’s Health Center of West Virginia, located in Charleston, faced the immediate risk of prosecution under a state abortion ban from 1882, so Quinonez and a coworker made 60 calls to patients canceling procedures scheduled for the ensuing three weeks, said Quinonez.
“That was definitely one of the worst days of my entire life so far,” she said. “Some of the staff were so upset that they couldn’t stop crying.”
Not only did the Supreme Court decision stop the clinic from providing abortions, but it delivered a crushing blow to the nonprofit health center’s financial stability, Quinonez said. This is a financial reality many abortion clinics — which often provide key care in communities and already face tight finances — are now contending with as they decide how, or if, they can move forward.
Abortions accounted for 40% of the Women’s Health Center of West Virginia revenue, Quinonez said, adding that there would be no easy way to replace such a large a chunk of the clinic’s $1.6 million annual budget. (At least for now, the clinic can again provide abortions, since a lawsuit brought by the clinic days after the Dobbs decision has paused enforcement of the ban.)
“Being unable to provide abortion care absolutely puts us in a precarious financial position,” Quinonez said. “Our ability to keep our doors open very much depends on revenue from the services we provide, as well as grants and donations.”
The loss of a community clinic dramatically curtails reproductive health care access for women, especially low-income women, according to research. One in three low-income women depend on clinics — such as a health center, Planned Parenthood or a publicly funded clinic — to get contraception, according to a Kaiser Family Foundation study released in 2019. Another study, published in the Journal of Women’s Health in 2019, found that greater travel distance for an abortion is associated with higher out-of-pocket costs, delayed care and negative mental health effects.
Many abortion clinics now must choose between two costly options: stay open but stop providing abortions, or move to an abortion-friendly state, clinic officials and reproductive health organizations told ABC News.
Remaining open but stopping the service altogether denies many clinics a key source of revenue from insurers or patients paying for the procedure, clinic staff said. Meanwhile, the choice to close and move means losing revenue from patients while facing front-end moving costs such as buying or leasing a building, relocating employees and transporting equipment, among other expenses, the clinic staff added.
Within a month of the Dobbs decision, 43 clinics across 11 states in the Midwest and South had stopped providing abortions, either because they had closed or stayed open but no longer offered the procedure, according to a study released last month by the Guttmacher Institute, a nonprofit research organization that supports abortion rights.
Even before the onset of state-level abortion bans, clinics struggled to financially sustain themselves, Caitlin Myers, a professor of economics at Middlebury College who specializes in the financial dynamics behind abortion care, told ABC News.
The budgets at many clinics strain under the weight of compliance with onerous regulations, dependence on low-income patients who often lack insurance, and the absence of federal funding and in many cases Medicaid coverage for abortions, she said.
“A lot of abortion providers, from what we can see on the outside, are operating on fairly thin margins,” Myers said. “There are already a tremendous number of challenges facing the U.S. health-care industry, and for abortion providers, those challenges are generally even greater.”
Clinics also face significant legal costs navigating a maze of measures at the federal, state and local level, which became even more complicated after the court overturned Roe, said Erin Grant, the deputy director at the Abortion Care Network, a membership organization made up of more than 200 independent clinics nationwide.
“The legal and litigation costs are one of the No. 1 barriers,” Grant said. “That doesn’t just have to do with the abortion ban itself. This is about building regulations, Department of Health inspections and dealing with insurance companies.”
For clinics that have chosen to move since the Dobbs decision, a new set of costs has arisen.
Whole Woman’s Health, a health care company that manages nine clinics across five states, announced last month that it plans to close four Texas-based clinics after an abortion ban went into effect in the state. To continue to meet the needs of patients in Texas, the company hopes to open one or more locations in nearby abortion-friendly states, said Amy Hagstrom Miller, the founder and CEO of Whole Woman’s Health.
The typical annual budget for one of the for-profit clinics run by Whole Woman’s Health is $1.5 million, the company said.
The cost of closing clinics and reopening elsewhere is immense, Hagstrom Miller said. Due to the planned closures, Whole Woman’s Health has laid off roughly half its staff in Texas. Meanwhile, the company has sought to get out from under leases on two of its Texas facilities at the same time it has pursued a lease on a facility in New Mexico. On top of that, the company has looked for temporary storage for medical equipment and planned the relocation of remaining staff.
“All of that requires capital resources that we don’t have now because we’re not able to see patients, which of course is the major source of income in any medical practice, not just abortion clinics,” Hagstrom Miller said. “You don’t have income if you don’t have patients.”
“It is a big financial burden,” she added.
Melissa Fowler, the chief program officer at the National Abortion Federation, an umbrella organization that counts roughly 500 member clinics in the U.S. and abroad, put it bluntly: “It’s incredibly difficult to open a clinic, especially in a new state.”
It is unclear how many clinics have sought to move since the Dobbs decision, and the number may be relatively small. The financial impact of state-level abortion bans may also be less significant for clinics at which the procedure makes up a smaller proportion of its services.
For instance, Planned Parenthood told ABC News that none of its affiliates had closed or moved since the Dobbs decision. Further, abortion makes up about 3% of services delivered at its affiliates, according to the organization’s 2020 annual report, the most recent available.
Needing additional revenue, many abortion clinics have received a surge in donations since the Supreme Court overturned Roe. As of early August, a GoFundMe launched by Whole Woman’s Health had raised more than $285,000, though the figure falls short of its $750,000 goal.
Quinonez, the executive director of Women’s Health Center of West Virginia, said the organization has raised $225,000 from donations since the Dobbs decision. That makes up more than a third of the nearly $600,000 the organization raised from donations over the entirety of its most recent fiscal year, Quinonez said.
Still, in light of a strict abortion ban passed by the West Virginia Senate during a special session late last month, the organization has cut its anticipated revenue for the coming fiscal year, ending in June 2023, to just a little over half of what the organization brought in over the previous fiscal year.
Quinonez declined to comment on whether the clinic is considering moving to an abortion-friendly state. When asked whether the clinic could remain open if West Virginia imposed a full ban on abortion, Quinonez said, “It remains to be seen.”
“Right now, we’ve received a lot of support from our community,” she added. “We certainly aren’t going anywhere in the near future and we’re working to add more services regardless of what happens to our ability to provide abortion care.”
(OSLO, Norway) — A 1,300-pound walrus that became a popular attraction in Norway in recent weeks was euthanized on Sunday, after officials concluded the marine mammal posed a risk to humans.
Increasingly large crowds of people came to the Oslo Fjord to see the female walrus, named Freya, who climbed onto small boats to sunbathe. After warning the public to stay away, the Norwegian government made the decision to have Freya put down early Sunday.
“Through on-site observations the past week it was made clear that the public has disregarded the current recommendation to keep a clear distance to the walrus,” Norway’s Directorate of Fisheries said in a statement. “Therefore, the Directorate has concluded, the possibility for potential harm to people was high and animal welfare was not being maintained.”
The head of the directorate, Frank Bakke-Jensen, said several possible solutions, including moving Freya, were considered but were ultimately deemed not viable.
“There were several animal welfare concerns associated with a possible relocation,” Bakke-Jensen said in a statement Sunday. “We have sympathies for the fact that the decision can cause reactions with the public, but I am firm that this was the right call. We have great regard for animal welfare, but human life and safety must take precedence.”
When Freya arrived in the Oslo Fjord last month, the directorate said officials were closely monitoring the walrus and were preparing to relocate her if possible. They said they hoped she would leave of her own accord.
“Neither the Directorate of Fisheries nor researchers we are in contact with recommend culling. It is therefore currently not applicable, and other options are being considered,” the directorate said in a statement on July 20.
At that time, Freya was “doing well, taking food, resting” and appeared “to be in good condition,” according to the directorate.
“The conditions around her are calm, with few cases of close human encounters,” the directorate said in another statement on July 25. “Walruses do not normally pose a danger to humans as long as you keep your distance. However, when it is disturbed by humans and does not get the rest it needs, it may feel threatened and attack. Nearby people can provoke dangerous situations.”
Walruses are a protected species in Norway. They’re native to the Arctic Circle. It’s unusual — though not unheard of — for them to travel farther south. Last year, a walrus named Wally was spotted on Valentia Island in Ireland.
ABC News’ Christine Theodorou contributed to this report.
Charles Trainor Jr./Miami Herald/Tribune News Service via Getty Images
(WASHINGTON) — Administration sources familiar with the investigation tell ABC News the amount and the sensitivity of confidential, secret and top-secret documents allegedly discovered in the Mar-a-Lago search raise critical national security questions that must be urgently addressed.
Those officials say law enforcement and security officials must now try to track the chain of custody of the material and try to determine if any of the material was compromised.
Officials acknowledged these critical questions need to be addressed because the material, in theory, would be of great value to foreign adversaries and even allies. Interviews with Trump administration officials are anticipated and authorities may even check for fingerprints to see if that provides insight into who had access.
The FBI warrant and inventory allege that 11 sets of sensitive information were recovered during the Mar-a-Lago search — including confidential, secret and top-secret documents. There was even top-secret, sensitive compartmented information (SCI) material. This classification of materials sometimes involves nuclear secrets and terrorism operations based on a Director of National Intelligence (DNI) overview of security protocols, which ABC News has reviewed.
The top-secret SCI documents are classified as national intelligence and involve intel “concerning or derived from intelligence sources,” according to a (DNI) document reviewed for this reporting. This material may come from allies, spying, eavesdropping or informants.
Top-secret SCI should only be handled under the strictest of conditions in secure-designated locations. Such locations are supposed to be impervious to eavesdropping and no electronic devices are allowed. Only a select few are ever allowed to view SCI — for example, a “need to know appropriately cleared recipient.”
Why the concern? U.S. officials know such sensitive documents are targeted by enemy nations and other adversaries who are constantly attempting espionage and eavesdropping activities here in the U.S.
Loss of information classified as confidential would “damage” national security — loss of secret documents would cause “serious damage” to national security and the compromise of top-secret material creates the potential for “exceptionally grave damage to the national security,” according to Executive Order No. 13526 signed by then-President Barack Obama in 2009.
Among the critical questions in the wake of the Mar-a-Lago raid are how were critical documents stored at the White House, and how was it that so many boxes of such highly classified material could be removed in the first place; who exactly was involved in the authorization to remove the material and who removed the material; how was the material transported to Mar-a-Lago — by plane, by truck — and who had access to it during transport. Top-secret material must have specifically authorized transport, may not be sent via U.S. mail and may only be transmitted by authorized government courier service. Other critical questions include: was the material stored in Mar-a-Lago, who had access to it and was it under constant security camera surveillance; and what were the security measures and protocols.
The Presidential Records Act establishes that presidential records automatically transfer into the legal custody of the archivist as soon as the president leaves office.
(LANCASTER, Texas) — A man was killed during a youth football game in Lancaster, Texas, Saturday night after an argument escalated into a shooting, according to police.
Witnesses told Lancaster police that the coaching staff and officials had gotten into a disagreement that became physical, leading to the shooting.
Lancaster police said they’re searching for Yaqub Salik Talib, the brother of former NFL cornerback Aqib Talib, and a warrant has been issued for his arrest.
“Upon arrival, officers were notified of a disagreement among coaching staff and the officiating crew,” the Lancaster Police Department said in a press release. “During the disagreement, the opposing coaching staff were involved in a physical altercation and one of the individuals involved in the altercation discharged a firearm striking one adult male.”
The man was taken to a hospital, where he later died, according to Lancaster police.
The victim was identified Sunday as Michael “Mike” Hickmon, a youth football coach, according to the family, who has released a statement.
“On behalf of the Hickmon family we would like to thank everyone for the onslaught of [love] we’ve received,” the family said in a statement. “This is a very difficult time for our family and community. Michael was our everything. He was incredibly kind and generous. He loved to laugh and make others laugh. He could also be sarcastic and drive you crazy. But we loved him, because all of those things made him, him.”
“Mike loved his family,” the statement continued. “He adored his wife. He loved being a dad and grandpa. He was a great provider. The best brother you could ask for. He loved football and boxing, he went to as many fights as he could. He loved boxing so much, he also worked boxing matches. He loved to travel. Our family is grieving. Hard. Right now we don’t see an end to our grief. But what I know for sure is… We will find a way to move forward. We don’t have a choice. We miss him immensely. We always will. We will love him forever.”
Authorities have not publicly identified the victim.
The shooting happened at around 8:50 p.m. at the Lancaster Community Park, Lancaster police officials said in the press release. An investigation is ongoing.
Police said if people have any information about Yaqub Salik Talib’s whereabouts, please contact Detective Senad Deranjic at 972-218-2756.
Lancaster is located in Dallas County.
ABC News’ Nic Uff, Marcus Moore and Marilyn Heck contributed to this report.
(LONDON) — The Iranian government on Monday denied that its officials were responsible for the attack on Salman Rushdie, saying the government hadn’t previously heard of the man who allegedly stabbed the author on Friday.
“No one has the right to accuse Iran,” Nasser Kanaani, spokesperson for the Iranian Foreign Ministry, said in his weekly press conference on Monday, adding that Iran was not previously aware of the alleged attacker.
“We know nothing about this person more than what we heard from the American media,” Kanaani said.
Rushdie, an Indian-British citizen, was stabbed last week during a lecture event in New York. Police identified the suspect as Hadi Matar, 24, who was charged with attempted murder in the second degree and assault in the second degree.
In 1989, Iran’s then-Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khomeini issued an apostasy fatwa over the author’s novel “The Satanic Verses.” The book was partly inspired by the life of Muhammad, the prophet of Islam. Iranian leaders and others accused Rushdie of blasphemy.
“Salman Rushdie exposed himself to the public anger by insulting Islamic sacred topics and crossing red lines of both over 1.5 billion Muslims and red lines of followers of all divine religions,” Kanaani said on Monday. “All of them were offended by someone insulting a divine prophet.”
“In attacking [Rushdie], no one deserves condemnation except of [Rushdie] himself and his supporters,” Kanaani said.
The Iranian foreign minister in 1998 said that the country had dropped Rushdie’s death threat, but the current supreme leader of the country, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who has the final say in the country’s political decision-making and issuing of religious decrees, confirmed multiple times, including in 2017, that the fatwa was still valid.
Rushdie was taken off a ventilator and was on the “road to recovery,” his literary agent, Andrew Wiley, said on Sunday.
Prior to Iran’s official reaction, local media appeared to express some contentment that Rushdie had been stabbed. Iran Daily, which often reflects the government’s perspective, ran a story under the headline: “Satan’s neck under the blade.”
Another newspaper, Keyhan, whose managing editor was appointed by Iran’s leader, congratulated the man who allegedly stabbed Rushdie, calling him “courageous.” It called for “a kiss on his hand who tore the neck of God’s enemy with a knife.”
Another newspaper printed a front-page story with the headline “Satan on the Path to Inferno,” which ran with a picture of Rushdie on a stretcher being wheeled away.
Public opinion on the stabbing may differ from the official perspective, according to one source who spoke with ABC News on Monday.
“This is a clear attack not just on a great writer but to the freedom of speech. Such acts must stop,” said Sarah, an Iranian student in sociology, who asked that her last name be withheld for her safety. “I am so happy that Rushdie survived and is on the path to recovery and the extremists failed doing what they wanted.”
(NEW YORK) — Russian President Vladimir Putin’s “special military operation” into neighboring Ukraine began on Feb. 24, with Russian forces invading from Belarus, to the north, and Russia, to the east. Ukrainian troops have offered “stiff resistance,” according to U.S. officials.
The Russian military has since launched a full-scale ground offensive in eastern Ukraine’s disputed Donbas region, capturing the strategic port city of Mariupol and securing a coastal corridor to the Moscow-annexed Crimean Peninsula.
Here’s how the news is developing. All times Eastern:
Aug 15, 5:53 AM EDT
Griner to appeal Russian conviction, lawyer says
Brittney Griner’s defense team filed an appeal for the verdict by Khimky City Court, according to Maria Blagovolina, a partner at Rybalkin Gortsunyan Dyakin and Partners law firm.
The WNBA star was found guilty on drug charges in a Moscow-area court this month.
-ABC News’ Tanya Stukalova
Aug 14, 4:44 PM EDT
1st UN-chartered ship loaded with Ukrainian wheat set to depart for Africa
The first UN-chartered ship loaded with Ukrainian wheat is set to head for Africa from the near the port city Odesa, Ukrainian officials said Sunday.
The MV Brave Commander is loaded with 23,000 tons of wheat that will be shipped to Ethiopia as part of a mission to relieve a global food crisis caused by the Russian invasion of Ukraine that has halted grain exports for months, Ukrainian Infrastructure Minister Alexander Kubrakov announced at a news conference.
Kubrakov said the UN-chartered ship is scheduled to leave the Pivdenny port near Odesa on Monday.
“When three months ago, during the meeting of the President of Ukraine (Volodymyr) Zelenskyy and the U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in Kyiv the first negotiations on unlocking Ukrainian maritime ports began, we have already seen how critical it is becoming a food situation in the world.” Kubrakov wrote in a Facebook post on Sunday. “This especially applies to the least socially protected countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America, for whom Ukraine has always been a key importer of agro-production.”
He said Ethiopia is in desperate need of Ukrainian grain.
“This country has been suffering from record drought and armed confrontation for the second year in a row,” Kubrakov said. “Ukrainian grain for them without exaggeration — the matter of life and death.”
He said he hopes the MV Brave Commander will be the first many more grain shipments under the U.N. World Food Program.
Aug 12, 2:28 PM EDT
‘They treat us like captives’: Exiled Zaporizhzhia manager on conditions at plant
An exiled manager at the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant told ABC News that the Ukrainian staff is treated “like captives.”
Oleg, who asked to be referred by a pseudonym, said he felt threatened by the Russian soldiers.
“They didn’t say, ‘I’m going to shoot you now,’ but they always carry guns and assault rifles with them,” said Oleg, who managed one of 80 units at the plant but was able to leave last month. “And when an assault rifle or a gun has a cocked trigger, I consider it as a threat.”
Amid reported shelling in the vicinity of the plant, Oleg said he was primarily concerned about its spent fuel containers, “which are in a precarious position, and they are not shielded well.”
Aug 11, 4:43 PM EDT
UN secretary-general calls for all military activities around nuclear power plant to ‘cease immediately’
United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres is “calling for all military activities” around the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Plant in southern Ukraine “to cease immediately,” and for armies not “to target its facilities or surroundings.”
Ukraine’s nuclear regulator Energoatom said Russian forces shelled the plant for a third time on Thursday, hitting close to the first power unit. Earlier on Thursday, Energoatom said five rockets struck the area around the commandant’s office, close to where the radioactive material is stored.
Yevgeny Balitsky, the Russian-installed interim governor of Zaporizhzhya Oblast, issued a statement claiming Ukrainian forces struck the plant, hitting close to an area with radioactive material.
Guterres said he’s appealed to all parties to “exercise common sense” and take any actions that could endanger the physical integrity, safety or security of the largest nuclear power plant in Europe.
“Instead of de-escalation, over the past several days there have been reports of further deeply worrying incidents that could, if they continue, lead to disaster,” he said, adding that he’s “gravely concerned.”
Rafael Grossi, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, pleaded with the U.N. Security Council Thursday to allow for an IAEA mission to visit the plant as soon as possible. He said the situation at the plant is deteriorating rapidly and is “becoming very alarming.”
(NEW YORK) — Scientists have a message about the spotted lanternfly: If you see one, squish it.
While that may sound harsh for bug lovers out there, experts say spotted lanternflies can be devastating to agriculture.
“It’s a good idea if you can kill them, to do that,” Brian Eshenaur, a senior extension associate for ornamental crops at Cornell University’s pest management division, told ABC News.
The New York City Parks Department offers similar guidance on its website.
“Harming our city’s wildlife is broadly prohibited, but in an effort to slow the spread of this troublesome species, the current guidance remains: if you see a spotted lanternfly, please squish and dispose of this invasive pest,” the department says.
New York state’s Department of Agriculture and Markets, Department of Environmental Conservation and the Office of Parks, Recreation, and Historic Preservation launched a program this year to train volunteers on how to identify and track the invasive species in the state.
The invasive species originated in Asia but was first found in the U.S. in Pennsylvania in 2014 and soon after in other states in the Northeast, including Connecticut, Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, New York and Virginia.
The insect, known scientifically as the Lycorma delicatula, feeds on at least 70 different species of trees, as well as vines and shrubs, including fruit trees, grapevines and several hardwoods, according to a report from the University of Michigan.
The lanternfly isn’t dangerous to people and pets, experts say. The insect is viewed as more of a nuisance since they don’t bite or sting.
So if you plan on being vigilant for spotted lanternflies this summer, here are some key things to know.
Keep an eye out in backyards and parks
The bugs gather in large numbers and can be found in backyard trees and in parks, where they feed on trees and ooze a sugary substance called honeydew, which then can cause a sooty mold that can land on lawn furniture or your car, Eshenaur said.
The female lantern fly can lay between 30 and 50 eggs each, usually between September and October. The eggs hatch in the spring, where baby lanternflies called nymphs emerge, before becoming fully grown around July, according to the Washington State Noxious Weed Control Board.
They favor warmer temperatures
Climate change could exacerbate the problem, experts say.
“The spotted lanternfly needs a long growing season to complete their lifecycle,” Eshenaur said. “With earlier spring and later fall frost that could favor the development of the lanternfly and increase the range in which they can survive at.”
Insect development depends on the temperature, Kelly Oten, assistant professor in the Department of Forestry and Environmental Resources at North Carolina State University, told ABC News.
“As the temperature is warm, their development increases, which means they’re going to actively feed for longer periods of time, potentially causing more damage,” Oten said.
They’re a threat to agriculture
Wine lovers, here’s some bad news.
The spotted lanternfly can be devastating to the multi-billion-dollar wine industry since they feed on grapes, reduce their crops and diminish the quality of grapes, according to Oten.
Overall, they’re a huge threat to agriculture. If the species were to spread through Pennsylvania, the expected losses to the state’s economy would be nearly $554 million a year and potentially lead to the loss of 4,987 jobs, according to a 2019 impact study from Penn State University.
For forestry, the estimated economic loss could be up to $152.6 million annually throughout Pennsylvania, the study found.
What to do if you see one
Killing the pest if you encounter it isn’t the only way to address the problem.
People should check outdoor items for spotted lanternfly eggs, which can look like a mass covered with gray wax. Scrape them off, put the mass in a plastic zippered bag with hand sanitizer and throw it out, the U.S. Department of Agriculture says.
While spotted lanternflies can’t kill trees, they can cause damage to them. People can also use insecticides approved by the Environmental Protection Agency, which can kill lanternflies and not harm trees.
(WASHINGTON) — Federal officials warned in a new bulletin that law enforcement officers and others in the government are facing increasing threats after last week’s unprecedented search of former President Donald Trump’s residence at Mar-a-Lago.
The joint intelligence bulletin from the Departments of Justice and Homeland Security was released Friday and obtained by ABC News. It was disseminated “in light of an increase in threats and acts of violence, including armed encounters, against law enforcement, judiciary, and government personnel, in reaction to the FBI’s recent execution of a court-authorized search warrant in Palm Beach, Florida,” officials wrote.
The bulletin links the latest concerns of possible violence with a broader polarization in society, driven in part by statements from lawmakers themselves.
“Since the search, the FBI and DHS have observed an increase in violent threats posted on social media against federal officials and facilities, including a threat to place a so-called dirty bomb in front of FBI Headquarters and issuing general calls for ‘civil war’ and ‘armed rebellion,'” officials wrote in the bulletin.
“Many of these threats include references to the perception that the 2020 presidential election was fraudulent and other claims of government overreach, which are narratives that have mobilized [domestic violent extremists] in the past to commit acts of violence, including against law enforcement and federal, state, and local governments,” the officials added.
Specifically, officials identified multiple articulated threats and calls for the targeted killing of judicial, law enforcement and government officials associated with the Palm Beach search, including the judge who approved the search warrant, the bulletin stated.
The FBI and DHS have also observed the personal identifying information of possible targets of violence, such as home addresses and identification of family members, disseminated online as additional targets, according to the bulletin.
The warning comes after FBI agents searched Trump’s home early last Monday in connection with the suspected improper handling of government information. A redacted copy of the search warrant shows agents took out boxes of sensitive, top secret and other classified files.
Trump denies wrongdoing and says he is being politically persecuted; his spokesperson has also claimed the documents that were retrieved were declassified.
The search caused an uproar among Trump’s allies, who painted it as overtly political. Some lawmakers, like Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., issued calls to “defund the FBI.”
Such comments built on baseless conspiracy theories by Trump and others that the 2020 election was “rigged” and that a so-called “deep state” has been supposedly acting to undermine the former president from within the government.
The law enforcement bulletin released Friday referenced officials’ rhetoric in being one of multiple possible contributors to the threats.
“Drivers that could escalate the threat environment include possible future law enforcement or legal actions against individuals associated with the Palm Beach search, statements by public officials which incite violence, a high-profile successful … attack that inspires copycats, or the emergence of additional conspiracy theories,” the officials wrote.
“The threats we have observed, to date, underscore that [domestic violent extremists] may view the 2022 midterm election as an additional flashpoint around which to escalate threats against perceived ideological opponents, including federal law enforcement personnel,” the officials wrote.
Days after the Mar-a-Lago search, authorities said, an armed man tried to break into the FBI’s Cincinnati field office before fleeing — and was ultimately shot and killed by police after a standoff.
The man, Ricky Shiffer, is a “suspected domestic violent extremist,” according to law enforcement officials briefed on the probe.
Investigators have been looking social media posts apparently linked to Shiffer, which called for violence in the days after the FBI raid of Trump’s home, officials previously told ABC News.
(WASHINGTON) — A man fatally shot himself after ramming his car into a security barricade at the Capitol early Sunday morning, police said.
U.S. Capitol Police said in an initial, brief statement that a man exited his vehicle after crashing it around 4 a.m., after which the vehicle “became engulfed in flames.”
The man then “fired several shots into the air” and shot himself as officers approached, police said.
“They had heard the gunshots, and Capitol police officers were responding. As [the man] got just onto the East Front of the Capitol property, one of our officers observed him to put the gun to his head and shoot himself,” Chief Tom Manger told reporters later Sunday. “Our officers then made sure that he was not a threat and then approached him. And, in fact, he was deceased.”
Late Sunday afternoon, police identified the man as 29-year old Richard A. York III, of Delaware, and said his next of kin had been notified.
His motive remained unclear, police said then.
Nobody else was injured in the incident and York did not seem to be targeting members of Congress, which is in recess, the police said in their first statement.
“[I]t does not appear officers fired their weapons,” police said.
An investigation was underway into York’s background, according to authorities. D.C. police are “handling the death investigation.” In a separate statement D.C. police confirmed this but said they had “no further details on the identification of the decedent or motive” no share.
Manger said in Sunday’s press conference that it was unclear if the incident was the result of a mental health emergency.
“A very preliminary check didn’t reveal anything on social media,” he said, adding, “Part of the investigation is we talk to this individual’s family and friends to see, perhaps, if we can get more information from them.”
York was not known to Capitol Police prior to this incident, Manger said.
“We do know that the subject has a criminal history over the past 10 years or so,” he said. “But nothing that, at this point, would link him to anything here at the Capitol.”
The incident comes amid what law enforcement has called heightened concerns of political violence — and in the shadow of alarming attacks at the Capitol in the past two years.
A Capitol Police officer was killed in a car-ramming attack in April 2021 just months after the deadly insurrection in which a violent mob ransacked the building and sent lawmakers temporarily into hiding.
Several officers died following that riot, including some from suicide.
ABC News’ Tia Humphries and Beatrice Peterson contributed to this report.
