Offices of 2 N.S. MPs locked down due to packages with 'chemical irritant'

Three constituency offices belonging to two Nova Scotia MPs were targeted Monday with envelopes containing what the RCMP called a "chemical irritant."

RCMP Cpl. Chris Marshall said suspicious packages arrived at the constituency office of Conservative MP Rick Perkins in Barrington Passage just before lunch, and a similar package was discovered later Monday at the constituency office of Conservative MP Chris d'Entremont in Yarmouth.  

Perkins later told CBC News an envelope was also delivered to his main constituency office in Bridgewater. He said an employee in the office opened the envelope after it arrived in the morning mail.

The man "immediately started to have his eyes water and had trouble seeing, and had his hands itchy, so he ran off to the washroom and had to wash off whatever it was, and then called the police," Perkins said from Ottawa. 

He said the employee was taken to hospital for decontamination and had since returned home and was in good spirits. He did not identify the employee.

Package contained 'disturbing' imagery

Perkins said the man got a glimpse of about 60 pages of material that included "disturbing images" inside the envelope.

"I think he said something about Nuremburg trials, and politicians being hung in the pictures is sort of what he initially saw," he said.

The MP, who was first elected in September, said the experience has been unsettling. 

"We live in a strange day and age when people can think that it's OK to try and harm people simply because they may or may not agree with their political views," Perkins said. "It's very disturbing."

Yarmouth letter unopened

D'Entremont said the manila envelope sent to his office may have arrived by mail or been delivered by hand through the mail slot.

He said his assistant intercepted the package after being alerted to the incident in Barrington Passage.

"She did not open it, yet she was a little itchy after touching it," he told CBC News from Ottawa. "We turned it over to the RCMP almost immediately.... Apparently it did cause some itching and some uncomfortable times, so I don't know much more than that."

The former provincial politician said in all his years as an elected official, he'd never received a package like this.

Marshall said officers with specialized training and equipment were dispatched to Yarmouth to remove and investigate the package.

Barrington lockdown

Meanwhile, the municipal building in Barrington Passage where Perkins's constituency office is located was locked down.

Marshall said the investigation remains active, and part of that process is sending warnings to staff at other constituency offices in the province.

The sergeant-at-arms for the House of Commons also sent an email to all MPs warning about the incidents Monday in Nova Scotia.

"While the House of Commons scans all incoming mail and goods destined for Parliament Hill, it does not have jurisdiction over mail destined for constituency offices. It is important that everyone handling mail remain vigilant," said Patrick McDonell in the email. 

The email instructed constituency workers not to touch the envelopes, to evacuate the area, and to call 911.