Posted on 12/07/2005 8:52:13 PM PST by 11th_VA
Federal law enforcement sources tell ABC News they had been on the alert for a possible shoe bomber when a federal air marshal opened fire at the Miami International Airport today.
In today's incident, an agitated passenger claimed to have a bomb in his backpack was shot and killed by a federal air marshal, officials said. No bomb was found.
Officials say a 50-year old Egyptian man was stopped six days ago at New York's John F. Kennedy airport. Sources say he had a suspicious pair of shoes that tested positive five times for the explosive substance TATP on the interior of his shoes between the heel and sole.
Federal officials say the man's shoes are remarkably similar to those used by shoe bomber Richard Reid, who attempted to blow up an American Airlines jet over the Atlantic four years ago.
The Egyptian man's destination was Des Moines, Iowa, sources say, and he claimed he was a student at Iowa State University, in Ames.
Strangely, after holding him overnight, airport security in New York released him. The FBI was notified after he was released. Now the FBI has put out a nationwide alert.
The man shot dead in Miami appears to have been deranged, but the missing Egyptian may help explain why air marshals acted as they did.
I wish I could believe that--but then the FBI has announced an APB, and it seems to me if they simply wanted to track him, they wouldn't let him know they were looking for him.
You sleep. I can't.
Keystone Kops???
It may be just a little more complicated than that, but not much. Or it could be just a dumb mistake by the TSA. That's all I want to say publicly, but just think about it a while longer...the entire situation. Then remember: loose lips sink ships.
How long before the ACLU states his right to 'pretend to have a bomb' were violated?
Well, I have, and I hope you're right, but I must say my confidence level is not high.
Surely we received an international bulletin when those arrests were made and then either TSA was beyond stupid or the story of his release is disinformation.
It is fairly easy to make from readily-obtained chemicals. There is no civilian use for TATP. One of the precursors could conceivably give a false positive, but that seems very, very unlikely.
Well of course, post 66 and post 1 are two separate incidents.
I just thought I would drop that arrest info in there as a point
of interest.
As to what the TSA knows or doesn't know I wouldn't know.
I would like to hope they at least have the same info we are
reading online.
One of the HS talking heads today said that as this saga was unfolding today in Miami, alerts went out to all U.S. airports.
They're not stupid. Since 9/11 U.S. skies have remained safe.
Well then I hope he is in our custody and singing like a bird and the entire report is disinformation.
There is something not kosher here. This Islamic killer is now on the loose. Why?
Normally you notify the FBI BEFORE you release him
Not after
Exactly--they would have released him and said they'd made a mistake..they would not have disclosed there was an APB out on him.
The Israeli story indicates that more than the three Ethiopians are suspect:
[quote]A team of detectives sent to Ethiopia to investigate the wired shoes, switches and dry cells returned at the weekend.
They established that a number of people from the suspects' locality had similar shoes but insisted on interrogating the three.
The first suspect was arrested on Tuesday morning while the other two were arrested on Thursday.
Police said yesterday that they expect to make more arrests.[/quote]
But that just means he had something that swabbed similar to TATP. They never actually found any TATP on him.
It may well have been a test, he being sent in with trace amounts to test the system.
As far as I know, its pretty hard to walk down the street and accidently step in a puddle of TATP.
IMO, they don't need to make excuses for the AM in florida, he did what he is trained to do
It's the exact same as the infamous catch and release policy that the Border Patrol is forced to use per orders from the hacks in DC
Release the Egyptian with explosive residue, but cap the crazy American?
Ditto.
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