Hoboken Police Investigate City Hall Security Breach
HOBOKEN, N.J. (CBSNewYork) – There has been a security breach at City Hall in Hoboken, where Mayor Ravi Bhalla says he and his family have received death threats.
Police said a man walked into City Hall around 8 p.m. Thursday, passed through a metal detector and told security he was going to use the restroom.
The mayor's Deputy Chief of Staff Jason Freeman was in his office when he noticed a bag with an object inside had been thrown at the administrative assistant's desk, police said. Freeman made eye contact with the man, who ran away, and called police.
Bhalla, the city's first Sikh mayor, was not there at the time, but said in a statement, "This incident, along with death threats to me and my family, is an unfortunate reminder that we need to take security seriously."
"The Joint Terrorism Task Force has evaluated City Hall, and we have been working to implement their recommendations for physical and procedural changes to improve security for all employees in the building," the statement continued.
"We take incidents like these incredibly seriously and will continue working to ensure the security of the mayor and everyone who visits City Hall," Hoboken Police Chief Kenneth Ferrante added.