Man behind white powder on signs also shot at Tempe DNC offices, police say

PHOENIX (AZFamily) — A man has been arrested for hanging suspicious bags of white powder to political signs in Ahwatukee and is also connected to the shootings at a Tempe DNC office, police announced on Tuesday night.

Investigators didn’t release his name or say how they reportedly connected him to both series of crimes, but they said they’ll have more information on Wednesday afternoon.

Arizona’s Family was there when law enforcement loaded a man into a police SUV in the area of 44th Street and Chandler Boulevard in response to the suspicious powder on Tuesday afternoon. It’s unclear if that’s the suspect, so we have blurred his face.

The unknown powder attached to the political signs caused several intersections to be closed in Ahwatukee on Tuesday.

They included Chandler Boulevard near 44th Street and 35th Street, as well as Ray Road and 50th Street.

Police later said the signs were also lined with razor blades.

It’s unclear what the substance was but crews didn’t take any chances.

Signs could be seen posted with political messages and an attached bag of unknown white powder. The signs had messages like “DEMS LIE” and “DEMS KILL JEWS.” Another read “Never Harris,” referencing Democratic Presidential candidate Vice President Kamala Harris.

One of the locations was near a church, and the pastor said there were some stressful moments.

“All this is is somebody threatening to hurt people, especially when it comes to hurting children. It can’t get more obscene than that,” said Family of Christ Luthern Church pastor Fred Gerlach. “What concerned me the most is I didn’t know if we were targeted because we are a school and a church.”

There were no reports of any injuries, and we’re still waiting to hear what the substance was.

In Tempe, police said the same suspect shot at the Democrats’ field office near Southern Avenue and Priest Drive three times, with the latest shooting on Oct. 6. The other two were on Sept. 16 and Sept. 23.

Police say the suspect fired BB pellets and gunshots at the office.

No one was inside the building at the time, and the Democratic Party eventually closed down the field office.

Again, it’s unclear how the crimes were linked to one man, but the police will give more information on Wednesday.

‘Unprecedented’ political threats

Stan Barnes, a political consultant with three decades of experience, told Arizona’s Family that he has never seen political threats and violence like what is occurring in this election cycle.

“People take pictures of it. People brag to their friends about what they’ve done, and it gives everyone a way of feeling relevant, and it’s all negative,” Barnes said. “It seems to me that the bitter fruit of the division we are having in Arizona and in the nation is one of the clues, one of the symptoms that things aren’t right in the political public square.”

Barnes believes social media contributes to the problem and that the situation won’t be resolved anytime soon.