Des Moines police are looking for a man who made threats to blow up a hospital helicopter. Police said the man made the threats Thursday night in front of Mercy Medical Center employees. After leaving the medical center grounds the man called the emergency room by phone and again threatened to bomb the Mercy air ambulance.
Investigators say they know who he is but no arrests immediately were reported. Officials did not report what triggered the threats.
http://www.dmregister.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070201/NEWS/70201003/1001/NEWS
3 held with bogus papers at Chennai airport (India)
2/2/07
CHENNAI: I mmigration authorities at the Chennai airport detained three persons -- a Sri Lankan national, a Swiss national and a carrier -- after they were found to have used fake documents to board different flights past midnight on Wednesday.
The immigration authorities said the Sri Lankan national, Somasundaram Mayuran, took the boarding pass in the name of S. Martin to board a Mumbai-bound flight. The carrier, Gopalan Sarveswaran, also obtained a boarding pass for the same flight. Both waited in the security hall area.
The Swiss national, Scheidner Martin, holding a Swiss passport, checked in for a Lufthansa flight bound for San Francisco via Frankfurt. He came to the security hall, where he exchanged his boarding pass with Mayuran. On suspicion, the immigration authorities interrogated Sarveswaran and detained Mayuran. The authorities seized a fake Indian passport from Mayuran, issued in the name of Solomon Martin.
Operator behind deal
While the interrogation was on, the Swiss national left for Mumbai. The immigration authorities alerted their counterparts in Mumbai, who sent him back to Chennai. The immigration authorities said Shiva, a Jakarta-based person, was the operator.
http://www.hindu.com/2007/02/02/stories/2007020204320400.htm
Air France: Paris-Rome flight diverted following security alert
February 1, 2007
PARIS: A bomb alert prompted a Paris-Rome flight to be diverted to Lyon in southeast France on Thursday, but police found nothing suspicious in a search of the plane, French authorities said. Passengers and crew disembarked from the Airbus A320 jet in Lyon, after which authorities searched the airplane and baggage, Lyon city authorities said.
Air France would not say what triggered the alert, which authorities said was received in Rome. There was no immediate information on whether anyone was arrested after the plane had landed. Rome-bound flight AF1504 took off from Paris' main airport, Roissy-Charles de Gaulle, shortly after 10 a.m. (0900 GMT) and landed in Lyon about 90 minutes later, an Air France spokesman said. According to company policy, he would not be quoted by name.
"An alert was given to the captain, and the captain took the decision to land at Lyon," where the 126 passengers and 6 crew members disembarked, he said.
http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2007/02/01/europe/EU-GEN-France-Italy-Flight-Diverted.php
A piece of construction equipment containing radioactive material was stolen from a toolbox located in the back of a pickup truck over the weekend. The moisture-density gauge was last seen at a Meridian job site when locked in a toolbox Friday afternoon. It was discovered missing Sunday afternoon by an employee of Aquaterra Engineering LLC, the Jackson-based company that owns the gauge.
The moisture-density gauge is a common device used by construction firms to determine the moisture and density of soil and construction materials. The gauge is yellow and is 9.5 inches wide, 15 inches long with a 17-inch tall chrome handle. It is labeled “Troxler 3411B” and has the serial number, 9533. The gauge contains radioactive materials. The radioactive materials within the gauge are safe when intact and shielded, but the material can pose a potential health threat if the device is damaged or the material exposed.
If found, stay away from the gauge, immediately notify local authorities and contact Aquaterra officials Gomer Wallace, (601) 573-3230; and David Coleman (601) 956-4467, or the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency at (800) 222-6362. A reward is being offered for the return of the gauge or for information that leads to its recovery.
http://www.cdispatch.com/articles/2007/01/31/local_news/area_news/area05.txt
Iranians arrested in raid on Gaza's Islamic university
02/02/2007
Palestinian security arrested seven Iranian citizens during a raid at the Islamic University, a Hamas stronghold in Gaza City, a security official said, and another committed suicide during the raid.
The raid came during a large-scale assault by Fatah-affiliated gunmen on the university. A Hamas official denied the claim and said there were no Iranian citizens at the university.
The raid came at the end of a day of clashes that collapsed a three-day truce between the warring factions. Iran has supplied Hamas with funds, but there have been no previous claims of Iranians working with Hamas in Gaza.
http://www.eecho.ie/news/bstory.asp?j=209070604&p=zx9x7y3yx&n=209071364
Thanks, Oorang.
It's always something. You come up with some really interesting, topical stuff.