Less Than Meets the Eye? U.S. Government Sting Operation Criticized as Setup

ABCNEWS ^ | 08/13/03 | Brian Ross

[Pikamax]

Less Than Meets the Eye? U.S. Government Sting Operation Criticized as Setup

By Brian Ross

Aug. 13— Administration officials are leaving out key facts and exaggerating the significance of the alleged plot to smuggle a shoulder-launched missile into the United States, law enforcement officials told ABCNEWS. They say there's a lot less than meets the eye.

The accused ringleader, British national Hemant Lakhani, appeared today in federal court in Newark, N.J., and was ordered held without bond on charges of attempting to provide material support and material resources to terrorists and acting as an arms broker without a license.

Outside the courtroom, U.S. Attorney Christopher Christie called Lakhani an ally of terrorists who want to kill Americans.

"He, on many occasions, in recorded conversations, referred to Americans as 'bastards' [and] Osama bin Laden as a hero," said Christie.

But what he did not say was just how much of the alleged missile plot was a government setup from start to finish.

For example, Lakhani had no contacts in Russia to buy the missiles before the sting and had no known criminal record for arms dealing, officials told ABCNEWS.

"Here we have a sting operation on some kind of small operator … who's bought one weapon when actually, on the gray and black market, hundreds of such weapons charge hands," said military analyst Pavel Felgenhauer.

Court documents show much of the case is based on the government's key cooperating witness, an informant seeking lenient treatment on federal drug charges, officials told ABCNEWS. He was the first person who led the government to Lakhani.

‘He Might Say Anything’

The missile shipped into the New York area last month was not a real missile — just a mockup — also arranged entirely by the government. The government also arranged the meetings at a New Jersey hotel and elsewhere, where Lakhani allegedly told undercover agents posing as al Qaeda terrorists about his support of bin Laden.

"One would have to ask yourself, would this have occurred at all without the government?" said Gerald Lefcourt, a criminal defense attorney.

In London today, Lakhani's neighbors described him as a quiet man who worked in the garment industry and had faced serious financial problems.

"I would have hoped the United States is thwarting real terrorism and not something manufactured because here all they're doing is stopping something they created," said Lefcourt.

Government officials said the case will show that Lakhani went along with the scheme willingly and was not entrapped. But the question remains whether any of this would have happened if the government had not set it up.

[texson66]

Man, you got it right about ABC's "reporting"! I'm on travel and just happened to see that report. Needless to say, it turned my stomach! ABC (All the Best Communists) should be tried for lack of journalistic integrity.

When the US captures OBL or Saddam, ABC will probably fault the US for taking too long and not respecting their "rights"!

(Needless to say, ABC was also just estatic that the POS X42 was going to "help" Gov Davis!)

[PhilDragoo]

I saw it as a terrorist using a shoulder-fired missile from the fast boat.

I dismissed the U.S. Navy as perp theory as not plausible.

I suggested to an airline pilot (who flew fighters in Vietnam) that the centerline fuel tank explosion was novel--he said, "Oh, no, it's happened before."

I filed that with the U.S. Army engineer who assured me that Oswald's marksmanship had indeed been duplicated in tests.

The centerline fuel tank explosion theory was probably first posited by Arlen Specter.

[PA Engineer]

"Here we have a sting operation on some kind of small operator … who's bought one weapon when actually, on the gray and black market, hundreds of such weapons charge hands," said military analyst Pavel Felgenhauer.

Yeah, everyday planes are falling from the sky from these "hundreds of such weapons"[/sarcasm]

[Musket]

All Bull Crap.

[PhilDragoo]

Pavel Felgenhauer is described as "independent", "respected", "military analyst", etc.

He is called the "senior defense and military correspondent (or editor)" of Segodnya.

Segodnya is described as "respected" or "liberal" or "reformist".

Segodnya is owned by Media-Most.

Media-Most is headed by Vladimir Gusinsky.

[Your Nightmare]

Jane Intelligence Digest has an article on this issue.

http://www.janes.com/security/international_security/news/jid/jid030813_1_n.shtml

Missile smokescreen in Moscow

When the history of this week's 'breaking story' about the alleged smuggling of a Russian Igla surface-to-air missile into the USA is finally written, the subtitle should run as follows: 'State set-up; no relevance to terrorist threat'. JID sheds some light on a much hyped tale of stupidity, greed and political spin.

Despite the plethora of over-excited media headlines earlier this week, the classic 'sting' operation, which was organised by the Russian secret service (FSB) and the USA's FBI to entrap an alleged arms dealer allegedly seeking to sell an Igla missile to what he apparently believed was a group of Islamic terrorists in the USA, revealed little beyond the intelligence services' insatiable desire for positive publicity. Put bluntly, there was no realistic prospect of this sort of advanced weapon being supplied to anyone without the active collusion of the Russian state authorities.

Above all, most reports missed the main points. The real threat to the USA and its allies - and there is a genuine risk - comes less from hi-tech weaponry of the Igla variety than from the committed militant willing to commit suicide, which was demonstrated by Al-Qaeda on 11 September 2001. Moreover, Russia became involved in this 'sting' because its military has a well-deserved reputation for selling anything to anyone.

[End of non-subscriber extract]

[weegee]

Peter Jennings, nothing! Brian Ross wants to be this guy:

Deny, deny, deny!

[medscribe]

Ah yes, the Anti-American Broadcast Corporation at it again. And they sit in the airy towers in Manhattan and wonder why the vast Bush country between the 2 coasts are tuning them out faster than Saddam can run from one hideout to another. Gee...no wonder FoxNews is beating the pants off all of them. By this time in 2005, these network dinosaurs will be extinct. Anyone know if we can kick Peter Jennings out of the country?

[Fresh Wind]

Somehow, I don't think this particular "sting" was the first time this arms dealer sought to supply arms to terrorists. If it took a sting to put him out of business once and for all, I'm all for it. This could save many lives in the long run, in spite of ABC's hate America whining.

[Bluntpoint]

ABC News:

BUSH KILLS TWO PUPPIES _{while saving 1000 children.}