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Posted inLocal News

White powdery substance found in envelope sent to Rep. Panetta’s Santa Cruz office

by Dan McMenamin, Bay City News October 16, 2026October 16, 2026

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U.S. Rep. Jimmy Panetta, D-Santa Cruz, speaks at a press conference at San Jose City Hall in San Jose, Calif., on July 31, 2025. A staffer at Panetta’s Santa Cruz office discovered a white powdery substance inside an envelope while opening constituent mail on Friday morning, Oct. 16, 2026. (U.S. Rep. Jimmy Panetta's Office via Bay City News)

An envelope sent to U.S. Rep. Jimmy Panetta‘s Santa Cruz office had a white powdery substance inside when a staffer opened it Friday morning, according to the congressman.

Panetta, a Democrat who represents California’s 19th Congressional District that covers parts of Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, Monterey and San Luis Obispo counties, said in a statement that the staffer opened the envelope as part of her daily morning routine responding to constituents.

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Tagged: investigation, Jimmy Panetta, November 2026 election, political threats, public officials, Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz County

Dan McMenamin, Bay City News

Dan McMenamin is the managing editor at Bay City News, directing daily news coverage of the 12-county greater Bay Area. He has worked for BCN since 2008 and has been managing editor since 2014 after previously serving as BCN’s San Francisco bureau reporter. A UC Davis graduate, he came to BCN after working for a newspaper and nonprofit in the Davis area. He handles staffing, including coaching of our interns, day-to-day coverage decisions and management of the newswire.

More by Dan McMenamin, Bay City News
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