Maybe that information was made public after the event became less publicized or later when Americans were less sensitized to it. I certainly, never heard that crew destroyed equipment. Last I heard was that it was in tact.
I probably heard more about it than was released to the general public. I was a contractor for the Navy and was working on some of the training for the C4I systems (communications, command, control, computers, and intelligence) at the time of the incident.
The crews ALWAYS destroy sensitive material/equipment as fast as they can.