Abbott declines to address report of 2016 assassination attempt

Governor Greg Abbott declined to address on Monday reports of an assassination attempt against him last year.

A Houston-area woman is in jail accused of sending an explosive package to Abbott, which he opened in October 2016. According to court documents, it could have killed Abbott, but the governor didn't open it a particular way.

A grand jury indicted the woman, Julia Poff, earlier in the month on several charges --including for sending explosives to then President Obama, the social security commissioner and Abbott.

Abbott, asked about it for the first time today, kept quiet.

“Look, I'm going to be happy and I feel obligated to speak to you all about this matter at the appropriate time. As you know this is an ongoing criminal issue and until this criminal issue is concluded its best that I not speak about,” Abbott said.

Federal agents say the one sent to Abbott "included a victim activated improvised explosive device" that could have caused "severe burns and death.”

Investigators say Poff was upset with Abbott over not receiving support from her ex-husband. A family member of Poff declined comment to FOX4.

On a Facebook page that appears to belong to Poff, a post made before the arrest claims someone Poff was in a rental dispute with framed her -- and used junk out of her trash to send the devices.

Investigators tracked the suspect in part due to a scratched out "shipping label that was addressed to Poff.”

Mail sent to the governor is typically processed at a state building before going to the governor's mansion.

Investigators say the packages sent to Obama and the social security commissioner were picked out in the screening process. It’s not clear if there was any screening before the package went to Abbott.

The last time security at the governor's mansion was breached involved a firebombing attack in 2008. The state made major upgrades to security cameras after that attack.