Internet weighs in as suspicious letter with white powder sent to House Speaker Mike Johnson's Louisiana church sparks FBI investigation

BENTON, LOUISIANA: A letter containing white powder addressed to House Speaker Mike Johnson's church is currently the subject of an FBI investigation.

His office acknowledged that the suspicious item was received by Cypress Baptist Church in Benton, Louisiana, on Monday, February 19. The speaker's wife, Kelly Lary, works as a pastoral counselor at the church, and Johnson and his family are involved members of the congregation. 

Field tests on the white powder have yielded negative results

A spokesperson for FBI New Orleans told Daily Mail, "The FBI, and other federal, state, and local authorities are investigating a letter sent to an address on Palmetto Road in Benton, Louisiana."

They added, "This letter contained a white-powder substance. At this point, field tests have been negative. Additional testing will be completed at local laboratories. Even sending a hoax letter is a serious crime. Anyone with information is asked to contact the FBI, the US Postal Inspection Service, or local authorities."

Authorities informed KTSB, a local news source, that the state police HazMat unit was dispatched to conduct an investigation and that the administrative office was evacuated.

The identity of the letter's recipient and the nature of the powder have not been disclosed by the authorities. In a statement, Johnson's spokesperson, Griffin Neal, said, "Speaker Johnson was made aware of a suspicious package sent to his home church in Louisiana."

He continued, "Speaker Johnson and the Johnson family thank the US Capitol Police, the FBI, the Louisiana State Police, and the Bossier Parish Sheriff’s Office for taking swift action and handling the situation professionally. As the investigation is ongoing, we will refer all further questions to law enforcement handling this matter."

The speaker's family is integrally tied to the church, taking part in teaching Sunday school and organizing marriage retreats for their church. Moreover, his wife has used the church as a base for her work toward promoting faith-based heterosexual marriage and opposing abortion.

She was an evangelical school teacher at Providence Classical Academy before beginning to provide faith-based therapy services.

Internet reacts as a letter with suspicious white powder delivered to Mike Johnson's church is under FBI investigation

Soon after the news of the FBI investigation for the suspicious letter sent to Johnson's church came to light, netizens were quick to share their opinions regarding the situation. 

One wrote, "The FBI, well this investigation probably won't go anywhere," and another added, "Well if the @FBI are involved, its assured that NOTHING will be done about it."

A person remarked, "Which will them be deposited in the bottom drawer of the back warehouse."

Someone else quipped, "FBI Findings: it was a white powdery substance of unidentified origin, case closed," while an individual claimed, "The corrupt FBI won't do s**t about this."

This article contains remarks made on the Internet by individual people and organizations. MEAWW cannot confirm them independently and does not support claims or opinions being made online.