"It is a false alarm if I may say so, we reassure the office of the mayor of Aulnay-sous-Bois.
Still, there was an intention.
And it was quite scary.
An intention to harm or at least to scare.
A bacteriological threat was in fact immediately considered.
This Friday, around 10:30 am, an agent from the mail service receives and sorts the mail from La Poste. One of the letters is addressed to
the mayor, Bruno Beschizza
. The agent opens the stamped envelope and discovers inside “a white handkerchief with a hundred small transparent balls, one millimeter in diameter each, some being yellow, specifies the municipality. A priori without message. "
Fear overwhelms the employee.
He referred it to his superiors and, immediately, the firefighters were alerted.
Once there, the emergency services prohibit access to the town hall and confine its occupants.
Everyone stays on their floor.
A security perimeter is set up and the entry by the rue Félix-Faure is condemned, "to facilitate the logistics", specifies the office of the mayor.
Municipal and national police are also on site.
A suspicious envelope was detected this morning by the mail service of the City of @ AulnaySousBois.
The Paris fire brigade immediately intervened with the police.
The procedure provided for this is ongoing.
pic.twitter.com/4BemTlCHtS
- Bruno Beschizza (@brunobeschizza) January 7, 2022
"We immediately suspected an anthrax letter," explains the mayor's office.
The emergency services carried out the classic procedure in this type of alert.
"Before adding:" One agent developed symptoms such as very severe itching and scratching.
It would seem that it is psychosomatic ”.
The envelope and the famous little balls were taken care of and analyzed.
According to the first elements, it would be "silica beads", declares the municipality.
So, a priori, without danger.
"The agents and we were very scared"
The resolution of doubt took place around half past twelve.
The emergency services evacuated the agents, floor by floor.
“The courier service floor, specifically concerned, remained confined a little longer than the others.
But then everything resumed its course.
"
Since then, the town hall is accessible again.
“Weddings are currently being celebrated there,” underlines the mayor's office in the middle of the afternoon.
The pressure is off.
Anguish too.
“We always have anonymous letters from denunciations or the like, it's something quite common, but like this, it's the first time.
There is a lot of fear for digital security.
On this kind of mail, there is much less tracing.
The officers and we were very scared.
We do not know the intentions.
We don't know who it comes from, why… ”
An investigation has been opened.
"Additional analyzes will be carried out as well as DNA research", continues the mayor's office.
