The Arizona Supreme Court and other buildings in Phoenix were evacuated Monday after a package was found in the court building’s mailroom with no return address that contained explosive substances. File Photo by Justin Lane/EPA-EFE
The Arizona Supreme Court was evacuated Monday after a package with no return label in the building’s mail room tested positive for “homemade explosives.”
The Supreme Court building and others in downtown Phoenix were evacuated after law enforcement officials discovered that the mysterious package contained several vials of suspicious substances, two of which were explosive, The Arizona Republic and Arizona’s Family reported.
The package was discovered around 8:00 a.m. in the Supreme Court building, after which multiple buildings in the Capitol Mall area of Phoenix, which includes the State Courts Building where Arizona’s Supreme Court is located, according to Alberto Rodriguez, communications director for the Supreme Court.
“I don’t want to speak on behalf of my colleagues, but, personally, it’s just one of those things where it doesn’t feel good when it gets to your workplace,” Rodriguez said “You hear about it all the time, but it’s unfortunate that it reached the Arizona Supreme Court.”
By 10:30 a.m., the buildings were evacuated and hours later explosives technicians carried the device out of the Supreme Court building, placed it into a containment unit and took it to another location to be detonated.
Although staff was permitted to work remote for the rest of the day, the building was cleared and reopened by 3:30 p.m.
Law enforcement officials said they are conducting an ongoing investigation and that no suspects have been identified.
Japanese workers pray on first business day of the new year
Worshipper pray at Kanda Myojin shrine on the first business day of the new year in Tokyo, Japan, on January 5, 2026. Photo by Keizo Mori/UPI | License Photo
