Politics & Government

Prank Causes Panic At Trump Campaign, RNC Offices In FL: Report

The Donald Trump campaign, Republican National Committee offices in West Palm Beach evacuated over possible listening devices, report said.

Donald Trump's presidential campaign and Republican National Committee offices in West Palm Beach were evacuated over potential listening devices, a report said.
Donald Trump's presidential campaign and Republican National Committee offices in West Palm Beach were evacuated over potential listening devices, a report said. (Justin Lane/Pool Photo via AP)

WEST PALM BEACH, FL — Donald Trump’s presidential campaign and Republican National Committee offices in West Palm Beach were evacuated Thursday when “potential listening devices” were found under three desks, the New York Times reported.

When the devices were heard beeping under the desks, campaign and RNC officials worried they were being spied on by a foreign government.

After about 50 employees were evacuated from the building, investigators determined the devices were actually plastic prank devices that can be purchased online, the Times said. It’s unknown who placed them in the office.

Find out what's happening in West Palm Beachfor free with the latest updates from Patch.

Earlier this summer, Iran tried to hack Trump’s campaign, as well as the campaign of President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris.

“We have observed increasingly aggressive Iranian activity during this election cycle, specifically involving influence operations targeting the American public and cyber operations targeting Presidential campaigns,” according to a statement released by the FBI, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency.

Find out what's happening in West Palm Beachfor free with the latest updates from Patch.

This article includes reporting by The Associated Press.

Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.