State and Santa Fe Police confirm that Thursday bomb threats against NM Democratic Senate Majority Leader Peter Wirth and Majority Floor Leader Reena Szczepanski came via email.
All three bomb threats made against New Mexico top Democratic lawmakers on Sept. 11 were sent as emails, police confirmed Friday.
The threats, which targeted the home and office of Senate Majority Leader Peter Wirth (D-Santa Fe) and the home of Majority Floor Leader Reena Szczepanski (D-Santa Fe), also prompted one school evacuation and a lockdown at City Hall. No explosives were found at any of the three locations, according to Santa Fe and state police departments.
The bomb threats followed Wednesday’s fatal shooting of conservative activist Charlie Kirk at Utah Valley University, and came amid similar threats across the country, including at numerous Historically Black Colleges and University campuses, leading to lockdowns and canceled classes.
One of the emails was sent to the Santa Fe Mayor’s office, and is under investigation by Santa Fe Police.
Mayor Alan Webber told Source NM in a phone call that he could not provide a copy of the threat emailed to his office Thursday, but said the email’s tone was “very matter of fact,” and contained no expletives.
“In broad strokes, the email was describing what the sender was alleged to have put into the mailbox, and that it resembled a pipe bomb, how it had been constructed and essentially what the timetable was for doing harm,” Webber said.
He told Source NM this kind of email was not common.
“This is a fairly rare occurrence for people to make a threat like that in the first place, thankfully, or would think that the way to get it to the public or to the intended target is by sending an email to the mayor’s office,” he said.
Webber said the day was already emotional, noting the anniversary of 9/11 and Kirk’s death – and said that he thought the timing of the threat was related to one or either of those events.
“We’re all in this together and disagreeing is fine, but violence is never the solution,” he said.
Webber said Santa Fe Police decided not to issue emergency alerts about the threats to prevent further threats to evacuated children, and noted that the affected streets were not “busy thoroughfares.”
Santa Fe Police Deputy Chief Ben Valdez told Source NM the department acted out of caution, and to prevent the locations of school evacuations and pick-ups.
“We don’t know if it is a legitimate threat or if it is a threat that is trying to solicit a response where now they expose students or faculty to danger,” he said.
New Mexico State Police declined to make anyone available for an interview, but said in an email that the threats were emailed, and directed only at the specific lawmakers. Source NM has pending public records requests for the emails and police reports with both agencies.
State Police alerted Santa Fe police to the emailed threats, and was also in contact with the Legislative Council Service Director Shawna Casebier.
Casebier, who is also the chief staff for the interim Capitol Security Subcommittee, told Source NM in a phone call that members met in closed session in June, Casebier said — following the assasination of Minnesota Rep. Melissa Hortman and her husband — and may meet again before the 2026 January session.
“Regardless of what happens in other states or in the national landscape, capital security, security of legislators, staff, public, in the building is of the highest priority and concern,” Casebier said. “We are constantly evaluating to ensure that the security protocols and infrastructure are appropriate to address concerns.”