Posted on 07/09/2004 1:14:14 PM PDT by BJungNan
Police fear five empty suitcases left at Penn Station, New York FBI headquarters and other security hot spots in early April were a test by terrorists bent on a Madrid-type attack on commuter rails, The Post has learned.
A confidential Metropolitan Transit Authority police bulletin, titled "Possible Surveillance Testing Tactics," reveals K-9 cops are on edge over a "suspicious packages pattern" they encountered between the last week of March and the first week of April.
"During the past week and a half, the K-9 Unit has responded to approximately five calls for unattended/suspicious packages which they cleared," the confidential bulletin stated.
"However, uniquely, all cases involved empty suitcases.
"These cases appear to be unusual because in most cases of an unattended bag/package there is something in the container, whether personal belongings, clothes or other items."
At Penn Station, a beat-up suitcase was found in the main waiting room at 9:40 a.m. on April 1, sources said.
(Excerpt) Read more at gogov.com ...
My bad. Please note my post #24.
On April Fools day no less.
Mr. Williams reported that 7 to 9 cities were to be hit with suitcase nukes on the same day, and it wasn't a question of IF, rather a question of WHEN. He looked awfully credible to me.
I pray he is wrong.
According to the story, there is noting to indicate that the suitcases were identical. One was clearly described as being beat up.
Possibilities:
1. Feds are conducting covert tests to determine response times;
2. Terrorists are conducting tests to determine response times;
3. April fools prank.
In any case, the media is being rather too helpful, don't you think?
"discovered on April 1 at 9:40 AM..."
1. I don't think the Feds left the suitcases.
2. The K-9 guys saw a pattern, a statistical change in the routine; the question is whether this change resulted from a single cause, or multiple causes. If it was a single cause, the most dangerous possibility, if not the most likely, would be a practice/training operation for planting bombs by some terrorists.
The main waiting room in Penn Station is very big and crowded; and guess what, I recall that Penn Station is real close to Madison Square Garden, where the Convention is to be held. Certainly within "kiloton" range of the Garden, as it were.
3. This would be a rather lame April fool's prank. Now, it would be funnier planting the suitcases and then calling the Port Authority, reporting a lost suitcase, having them retrieve all these suitcases and you say, "no, that's not mine." After about the tenth one, go home and send them an April Fool's card, ha ha ha.
The media are giving the response time to any terrorist who knows when the suitcases were planted, assuming that the time given was not changed. This is certainly a concern for more than one reason. Can the City shut down Penn Station during the Convention?
For brief preiods of time, such as when the President is present giving his acceptance speech and the usual balloon drop.......................YES, you can bet there will not be a train entering the station and the usual schedules will be changed to accomidate this.
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