Suspect Taken Into Custody After Vandalizing Utah Governor’s Campaign Office

Utah Gov. Spencer Cox speaks with reporters after President Joe Biden’s speech marking the one-year anniversary of the Promise to Address Comprehensive Toxics (PACT) Act at the George E. Wahlen Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Salt Lake City, Utah, on Aug. 10, 2023. Madalina Vasiliu/The Epoch Times

Utah Gov. Spencer Cox said on Tuesday that his campaign headquarters in Salt Lake City had been vandalized by a person who had targeted him before, and the suspect has been taken into custody.

Mr. Cox shared a series of images on X, formerly known as Twitter, showing what appeared to be the front entrance of his campaign headquarters broken, with shattered glass all over the floor.

“Rough morning for our team and my campaign headquarters. This person has targeted me and my family before and, fortunately, is now in custody,” he stated on Nov. 6 without elaborating further.

The Salt Lake City Police Department said that they were notified about a possible burglary at the governor’s campaign office at around 11.30 p.m. on Nov. 5, according to The Hill.

When the police arrived, they learned that the suspect had already been taken into custody by a Utah Highway Patrol trooper who was at the scene.

The suspect was later transported to the hospital for involuntary commitment owing to “a mental health crisis,” according to the police.

Police said the man allegedly hurled a rock at the office’s entrance, but there was no evidence suggesting the incident was an act of burglary. His identity was not disclosed because no charges had been made so far.

An investigation into the incident is still ongoing. Mr. Cox, who is seeking reelection, also did not disclose the identity of the man.

Utah Sues Meta for Child Addiction Harm

It comes just weeks after Mr. Cox and Utah Attorney General Sean Reyes filed a lawsuit against Meta Platforms and its subsidiary Instagram on Oct. 24 for allegedly harming young people through the social media platforms Facebook and Instagram.

They accused the social media giant of violating the Utah Consumer Sales Practices Act by “designing the platforms to trap children in excessive, harmful use that causes serious mental health issues.”

Meta is also accused of deceiving parents and young users about the safety of using Instagram and Facebook.

They called for “meaningful changes” to the company’s business practices and asked the court to impose a penalty and other relief to ensure that companies understand the consequences of such conduct.

“Just as litigation effectively spurred change by the opioid pharmaceutical industry and Big Tobacco, we expect this lawsuit will inspire Meta to improve its child safety practices,” Mr. Cox said.

“Regulating social media companies to protect minors is not a partisan issue, and most people across the political spectrum agree we cannot allow addictive algorithms and deceptive practices to continue harming our children,” he added.

Utah also sued TikTok on Oct. 10, alleging the company of “illegally baiting children into addictive and unhealthy use” of its platform. The lawsuit states that TikTok “deceptively portrayed itself as independent of its China-based parent company ByteDance.”