A mail clerk performing routine duties at American Century Investments on Jan. 31 opened a package addressed to an officer of the Kansas City firm, which offers financial services. The daily routine, however, was shattered when the clerk found a note inside reading, "Bang! You're dead," and warning that the box contained a live improvised explosive device (IED). A police bomb squad summoned to the scene examined the package, finding a PVC pipe filled with what appeared to be smokeless powder and buckshot. The device also had exposed wires protruding from it, though reportedly had no power source, switch or other ignition system — meaning the sender intended it to terrify and not kill. A day later, the Chicago financial services company Perkins, Wolf, McDonnell and Co. received a similar package.