Ebola scare rattles New Zealand newspaper after suspicious package from 'jihadist group'
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}
A small amount of liquid in a plastic bottle – supposedly containing the deadly Ebola virus – was sent to a New Zealand newspaper on Monday, putting authorities on edge.
Sky News Melbourne bureau chief Ahron Young told News.com.au that the vial was sent in a package from a “jihadist group” to the offices of the New Zealand Herald. Police said the suspicious package contained several documents, one of which mentioned Ebola.
A tweet by the newspaper said the vial was sent to the mailroom and “all precautions were taken.”
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}
The package was then sent to Melbourne’s Victorian Infectious Diseases Reference Laboratory for testing, according to News.com.au.
The New Zealand Herald suspects that the delivery is a hoax.
The country’s parliament also was sent a similar package Monday, prompting a lockdown around its mailroom.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}
A police spokesman told the New Zealand Herald that both packages may be linked, as they both contained messages about Ebola.