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Handcuffs of officer killed on Sept. 11 used to arrest al-Qaida

The handcuffs began as standard issue gear for Port Authority police Officer Donald McIntyre, killed in the line of duty on Sept. 11, 2001.

When the cuffs were discovered in the rubble of the World Trade Center, they became a keepsake for his widow.

By the time McIntyre's co-worker began slapping the same handcuffs on terrorist suspects four years ago, the gear that once hung from McIntyre's belt took on an almost mystical caste.

"It became a spiritual thing," said Port Authority of New York and New Jersey Detective Thomas McHale, who took the handcuffs to Afghanistan while chasing terrorism suspects with the Joint Terrorism Task Force. "I thought, 'You're helping us down here, Donnie.'"

(snip)

Abu Zubaydah, one of Osama bin Laden's top lieutenants, was the highest-profile arrestee to wear the cuffs. The cuffs were placed on suspects after their arrests or during interrogations.

"Before we'd hit al-Qaida, we'd hold the cuffs and say, 'OK, this is for Mac,'" McHale said. "Then we'd kick the doors in." (snip)

http://www.tkb.org/NewsStory.jsp?storyID=120910