PORT TOWNSEND — Powder-covered tape and discolored stains on a green envelope prompted a scare at the Jefferson County Treasurer’s Office in the County Courthouse.
The envelope, which arrived in Monday morning’s mail, had all the unusual markings of a suspicious letter.
A worker put it into a plastic bag and contacted county Safety Officer Mark Bowes.
County officials contacted the U.S. Postal Service in Seattle, which sent an investigator to the return address listed on the letter.
An elderly man explained that he had spilled gin on the envelope, which contained his property tax payment.
Then he sealed it with double-sided tape. To reduce the stickiness he put talcum powder on the tape.
No one was evacuated, and the emergency response wasn’t near the level a week ago when a worker at the post office discovered a yellow powder outside an envelope with a Port Angeles return address.
That scare prompted local authorities to cordon off the building and to call in a Washington State Patrol hazardous materials response team.
The full story appears in today’s Jefferson County edition of the Peninsula Daily News. Click on “Subscribe” to get the PDN delivered to your home or office.