Riverhead Supervisor Looks to FBI to Investigate Racist Hate Mail Sent to School Superintendent
The Riverhead Town Supervisor has requested a federal investigation into racially-charged, threatening hate mail reportedly sent to the Riverhead Central School District superintendent before she suddenly resigned at the end of June.
Supervisor Yvette M. Aguiar confirmed on Wednesday that she requested the FBI initiate an investigation in a request that was hand-delivered to the FBI’s Long Island office on Monday.
Dr. Aurelia Henriquez received three handwritten notes with ethnic and racial slurs at both her home and the district office, as well as a doll’s head and arms, in June, which was first reported by RiverheadLocal.com on Friday. She resigned abruptly on June 30, soon after the school district’s budget was voted down.
“I became aware the case had been closed by the Suffolk County Police Department for lack of cooperation from the complainant,” Aguiar said in response to questions from IndyEastEnd.com.
“I noticed at least two of the letters were written by the same author,” Aguiar said, “and decided to ask the FBI Hate Crimes Unit to investigate the matter further. Under these types of circumstances, the FBI has the ability to pursue the matter, regardless of whether there is a complainant or not.”
As of Wednesday afternoon, she had not heard back from the FBI.
“The messages sent goes against the moral value and fabric of our society. I will not tolerate threats or any act of hatred in our community. I will do whatever is necessary to identify the author of these letters and hold them accountable,” the town supervisor said.
Suffolk County police were investigating the letter sent to Henriquez’s home, in their jurisdiction, and Riverhead Town police were investigating the letters sent to the district office, according to a county police spokeswoman.
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