An explosive device was found on Monday in a mailbox at the Westchester County home of billionaire philanthropist George Soros, the authorities said.
According to The New York Times, a law enforcement official confirmed that the device was found near Soros’ home. It did not explode on its own, and bomb squad technicians “proactively detonated” it, the official said.
Federal and state law enforcement officials responded to the scene in Katonah, NY, after the Bedford Police Department received a call about a suspicious package at about 3:45 p.m. local time.
“An employee of the residence opened the package, revealing what appeared to be an explosive device,” the police said in a statement. “The employee placed the package in a wooded area and called the Bedford police.”
Soros was not home at the time. There were no reports of other injuries. Police said they had turned the case over to the FBI, which did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives also did not respond to a request for comment.
The Jewish billionaire has in the past come under fire for his support for anti-Israel leftist groups.
In 2016, a leaked document of Soros’ Open Society Foundations (OSF) organization said that OSF’s strategy with respect to Israel is to "focus on raising the cost of the occupation and ending it on the one hand, and on human rights advocacy and protection on the other."
Soros was most recently criticized by actress Roseanne Barr, who branded him a Nazi collaborator in a series of tweets which ultimately led to ABCcancelling the reboot of her sitcom.
Barr ultimately apologized for the tweet, writing, “I apologize sincerely to George Soros. His family was persecuted by the Nazis and survived the Holocaust only because of the strength and resourcefulness of his father.”