China's mystery seeds sent to US as a form of terrorism?

[Applegarden]

Dude, nooooo, what is this.  Nothing i have ever seen before if this is true.

 

[Nak Khid]

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/china-seeds-americans-mail-unsolicited/

this CBS news report says that the reason the seeds were sent corresponds to this Snopes article 

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 “Better Business Bureau’s Jane Rupp has another theory. She thinks it could simply be a scam relating to customer reviews, in which companies post low-cost items so they can write fake reviews for their business in a resident’s name.”

As U.S. News & World Report explained, the “Fake Listing Scam” is employed by disreputable sellers on sites such as Amazon.com, as they attempt to build up false reputations as reliable vendors in order to facilitate luring victims to their scams:

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Snopes 

https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/china-seed-mailings/

Are Americans Receiving Unsolicited Mailings of Seeds from China?

Numerous U.S. residents have reported receiving seeds in the mail from China that they did not order.

DAVID MIKKELSON
PUBLISHED 25 JULY 2020

At this juncture it appears true that the mysterious mailings of seeds sent with return addresses in China are real, but the specific motive behind them is as yet unknown.

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The motive is uncertain.  That the seeds might be an invasive species is unknown
If they are you can't just throw them in the garbage because they could grow in a landfill. 
You are suppose to all your state dept of agriculture

I suspect this is just a review scam not an invasive species.  If it was I wouldn't call it "terrorism" 
maybe agricultural sabotage, I'm not sure how to describe that  

 

Edited July 29, 2020 by Nak Khid

[Rilles]

China: Oh hey! Everybodies suspicious of us right now! Lets start sending seeds to the US with our names on them! That would be great! They wont suspect a thing! 

[Nak Khid]

1 hour ago, Rilles said:

China: Oh hey! Everybodies suspicious of us right now! Lets start sending seeds to the US with our names on them! That would be great! They wont suspect a thing! 

It's like an episode of Batman, the bad guy intentionally leaves clues so you can catch them 

Instead of  packing then as "Bob's  All-American Gifts"  
they put Chinese writing on it 

[Leo Gura]

Breaking News:

Trump Sells Alaska To Putin For Bag Of Magic Beans

[Nak Khid]

https://www.yahoo.com/news/mysterious-seeds-sent-china-us-151105272.html

Mysterious seeds sent from China to the US identified by the USDA
Graig Graziosi

August 3, 2020, 11:11 AM

The mysterious seed packs from China that hundreds of Americans received in the mail have been identified, according to the US Department of Agriculture.

Federal officials warned those who received the seeds not to plant them over fears that some may be invasive species and could destroy native plants and insects.

Osama El-Lissy, a member of the USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, said officials had identified more than a dozen plant species included in the seed packets.

"We have identified 14 different species of seeds, including mustard, cabbage, morning glory and some herbs, like mint, sage, rosemary, lavender, and then other seeds like hibiscus and roses," he said.

Authorities believe the seed packets may be part of an online money-making scam that likely originated in China.

"At this time, we don't have any evidence indicating this is something other than a 'brushing scam' where people receive unsolicited items from a seller who then posts false customer reviews to boost sales," a USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service said.

The USDA is working alongside the US Department of Homeland Security to investigate the packages.

"USDA is currently collecting seed packaged from recipients and will test their contents to determine if they contain anything that could be of concern to US agriculture or the environment," the statement said.

Packages have been mailed to addresses in all 50 states as well as to addresses across Canada.

Many of the packages had shipping information printed in Chinese characters on the bags, some of which were misprinted and described objects like bracelets or rings.

Most of the packets appear — according to the address labels — to have come from the Chinese cities of Suzhou.

A spokesperson for the Chinese foreign ministry said last week that the Chinese mail service was working with the US Postal Service to have some of the packages shipped back to China for analysis.

The spokesperson claimed that the address labels on the package were forged.

Despite many of the seeds being identified, the USDA is still asking anyone who receives the seeds not to plant them. They recommend storing the seeds away from dogs and children and reporting them to the agency.