New Delhi: Law enforcement authorities have reported that the U.S. Secret Service is currently conducting an investigation into a suspicious substance found inside the White House on Sunday evening. The incident resulted in a brief evacuation as a precautionary measure, reported The Washinton Post.
According to the report, an official familiar with the investigation and the audio of a transmission from a D.C. fire unit that responded to the incident, said that the drug, a white powder, tested positive for cocaine in a preliminary test.
The recording, timestamped at 8:49 pm, was made by a firefighter from the department's hazardous materials team. “We have a yellow bar saying cocaine hydrochloride.”
Anthony Guglielmi, a spokesperson for the Secret Service, stated that said the substance is undergoing further testing to determine what it is, and authorities are looking into how it got into the White House. He said the D.C. fire department determined the substance did not present a threat.
Guglielmi also informed that President Joe Biden was not present in the White House at that time, but the incident resulted in a security alert and brief evacuation of the Executive Mansion, as per the outlet. He stated that "an investigation into the cause and manner" of how the substance entered the White House is ongoing.
He said it was found by members of the Uniformed Division of the Secret Service conducting routine rounds through the building.
Vito Maggiolo, spokesman for the D.C. Fire and EMS Department, said only that the agency “provided support to the U.S. Secret Service as they conducted an investigation.”