Ohio City Hall Receives Threats Over Trump’s Anti-Immigrant Lies

City Hall in Springfield, Ohio, was evacuated Thursday after receiving a bomb threat, days after the city was thrust into the national spotlight when former President Donald Trump shared racist lies about immigrants living there.

Multiple agencies and media outlets were alerted by email Thursday morning to the bomb threat targeting Springfield City Hall and other buildings, according to a statement from the city. The threat prompted an “immediate response from local and state law enforcement.”

The buildings were evacuated as a safety precaution until all affected areas are evacuated, Springfield Police Chief Allison Elliott said at a news conference. The source of the threat remains unknown, but authorities are investigating.

“Springfield is a community that needs help,” Springfield Mayor Rob Rue told the Washington Post, adding that national leaders should provide that help and not “harm their community as, unfortunately, we’ve seen in recent days.”

Rue did not immediately respond to HuffPost’s request for further comment on the threat, but told the Post that the threats contained “hateful language” toward Haitians and immigrants. The city also did not respond to a request for comment.

Between 12,000 and 15,000 immigrants live in the county surrounding Springfield, ABC News reported.

Former President Donald Trump and his running mate, Sen. J.D. Vance (R-Ohio), recently spread false allegations that Haitians in Springfield are stealing and eating people’s pets.

“In Springfield, they eat the dogs,” Trump said during the presidential debate Tuesday. “The people that came, they eat the cats. They eat the pets of the people that live there. And that’s what’s happening in our country. And it’s a disgrace.”

There is no credible evidence to support the claim, which gained momentum after far-right internet users confused accounts of a missing cat with unrelated police body camera footage showing a woman arrested for allegedly eating a cat.

Rue and Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine (R) have both rejected baseless allegations that Haitians eat pets.