UpDate - Vol. 12, No. 35, Page 2
July 8, 1993
Caution is key in responding to mail bomb threat

     All members of the University community are urged to exercise caution
when handling incoming U.S. mail in light of the envelopes containing
explosive devices recently sent to scientific researchers in Connecticut
and California.
     The packages, ehich have been sent to both home and institutional
addresses, were padded manilla envelopes, approximately 8-1/2 by 11 inches.
At least one of the packages bore the return address of Dr. James Hill,
Chemistry Department, California State University, Sacramento, Calif. Hill
has been interviewed by the FBI and is not a suspect.
     Common characteristics of letter or parcel bombs as described by the
U.S. Postal Inspection Service include:
     
        * foreign, priority and special delivery mail,
        * mail marked "confidential", "personal" and "to be opened by
          addressee only,"
        * visual distractions such as "fragile," "rush" or "handle with
          care,"
        * excessive postage (usually postage stamps),
        * fictitious or no return address,
        * poorly written of handwritten addresses,
        * incorrect titles, or titles but no names,
        * misspellings of common words,
        * oily stains or discolorations,
        * excessive or uneven weight distribution,
        * excessive binding material: masking, electric or strapping tape,
          string, twine,
        * rigid, lopsided or uneven envelopes,
        * protruding wires, screws or other metal parts and
        * postmark from an area different than return address.
        
     For more information, or if you have concerns about a particular piece
of mail, call the University police at 831-2222.
                                                  -Elisabeth Clarke