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BTW, I live not all that far from the Beverly airport.
I'm wondering the same thing myself. Two middle-eastern men march into a flight school and ask to buy a crop-duster? After 9-11? Either they are the two stupidest would-be terrorists on the face of the earth or it's a hoax, or else maybe their accents were so thick nobody really knew what they were saying.
TUCSON CITIZEN.com: "BORDER AGENT TAKE TO UMC AFTER ATTACK IN DESERT" by Luke Turf (ARTICLE SNIPPET: "Herskovits said the agent was tracking a group of illegal immigrants, when he came upon a second group and a "scuffle" ensued. "While he was struggling with one person, another person jumped him from behind and hit him on the head, back and neck with a large rock," Herskovits said.") (February 13, 2003)
AZCENTRAL.com - THE ARIZONA REPUBLIC (AP): "CUSTOMS OFFICER FATALLY SHOOTS MOTORIST AT BORDER" (ARTICLE SNIPPET: "The driver of the sports utility vehicle was crossing from Mexico into Arizona when he aroused suspicions that he might be smuggling something, said Customs spokesman Roger Maier. The Customs inspector tried to inspect the vehicle but the driver interfered. The driver then threatened the inspector, prompting the officer to fire a single shot, striking the man, Maier said. The man pulled away from the border crossing but drove off the road within 100 yards and died, Maier said.") (February 13, 2003)
SIGN ON SAN DIEGO.com (AP): "MEXICAN IMMIGRATION AGENTS DETAIN SIX IRAQI CITIZENS" (ARTICLE SNIPPET: "TIJUANA, Mexico -- Mexican immigration police announced Wednesday they had detained six Iraqi citizens who arrived in Tijuana in an apparent attempt to cross into the United States. The Iraqis, five men and one woman, claimed they were German citizens when they arrived at the Tijuana airport on a flight from Mexico City Tuesday night. The Iraqis were detained and returned to Mexico City for investigation by Mexico's National Immigration Institute.") (February 12, 2003)
***ECNNEWS.com - THE SALEM NEWS Online Edition: Beverly, MA. -- "FBI INVESTIGATES ATTEMPT TO BUY CROP DUSTER AT BEVERLY AIRPORT" by Marc Fortier and Jill Harmacinski (ARTICLE SNIPPET:"Two men tried to buy a crop-dusting airplane at Beverly Airport Tuesday night and when questioned, jumped into a pickup truck and left the area, prompting a tight-lipped anti-terrorism investigation by state police and the FBI. State police confirmed they are investigating an incident that occurred at the airport at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, but wouldn't provide further details. Airport sources said the men, who appeared to be of Middle Eastern descent, went to Aviators of New England, a flight school at the airport on LP Henderson Road, and asked the owner if they could buy a crop-duster. "They had thick accents," said Victor Capozzi, owner of General Aviation Services, another airport business.") (February 13, 2003)
WorldNetDaily.com: "MIDEAST MEN WITH 'RAZORS' YANKED OFF AMERICAN JET" by Paul Sperry (ARTICLE SNIPPET: "The two passengers had Virginia IDs, but were not U.S. citizens. A source familiar with the incident told WorldNetDaily that the men claimed to be Iranian nationals, but were not carrying passports. The source also said both men were searched at the gate, the other at the insistence of the airline, and "10 straight razors." as well as a "utility knife or box cutter," were found along with the wad of cash in one of their bags.") (February 13, 2003)
***PILOTONLINE.com - THE VIRGINIAN PILOT: "FBI AGENT RECOUNTS EASTERN SHORE RAID" (ARTICLE SNIPPET: "That's when Roberto Perez, an acquaintance, reported to the Accomack County Sheriff's Department that Campos had told him he was an "Arabian'" sent here to poison Virginia's waters, according to testimony Friday. "If he did not poison the water someone would kill him," federal court records say. The case was turned over to the FBI, which led to Tuesday night's raid. Campos, a migrant worker from Mexico who speaks no English, was charged with using phony immigration documents and a false Social Security number. He has been unemployed since being fired in December from an Eastern Shore seafood company after testing positive for drugs, court records say. The FBI said no evidence exists that Campos ever intended to poison water.") (February 8, 2003)
BBC NEWS: "MAN HELD IN GATWICK GRENADE ALERT" (ARTICLE SNIPPET: "Police have arrested a man carrying a live hand grenade at Gatwick Airport and evacuated one terminal. All flights out of the north terminal were suspended after the man - thought to be a 37-year-old Venezuelan - was detained under anti-terrorism laws. Hundreds of passengers are inside planes stranded on the runway. However the south terminal is still open and flights are able to land. The man's baggage was searched after his arrival on a British Airways flight from Colombia, Sussex Police said.") (February 13, 2003)
FOX NEWS.com (AP): "PLANE CARRYING FOUR AMERICANS CRASHES IN COLUMBIA" (ARTICLE SNIPPET: "The Cessna was flying from Bogota to the Florencia area, 235 miles to the south, when radio contact was lost eight minutes before landing, Colombia's Civil Aviation agency said. There were four Americans and one Colombian aboard the plane, according to the agency. A Colombian official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told The Associated Press there were reports Colombian army troops found no one on board the wreckage, and that it was feared they had been taken by rebels. Other officials suggested those aboard the Cessna may be hiding, if they survived the crash, to avoid capture by the rebels.") (February 13, 2003)
***"ISLAM ONLINE.net - Arts and Entertainment: "RAPPER, PARIS, UNLEASHES A 'SONIC JIHAD" by Ali Asadullah (ARTICLE SNIPPET: "In 1992 Paris caused quite a stir with his song "Bush Killa", a graphic, self-described "revenge fantasy" in which then president George Bush, Sr. is assassinated. The government was none too pleased and mainstream media criticism was harsh and unrelenting. So Paris is no stranger to controversy. Controversy, however, is something with which Paris willingly flirts; and he can expect more of it when his new album, Sonic Jihad, is released early this year. As if the title was not demonstrative enough in its message, the cover art, which features a jet airliner superimposed to look as if it is headed for a collision with the White House, puts to rest any illusions that this album is filled with trivialities.") (January 8, 2003)
More particularly unusual -- I'll bet crop-dusters are rarely used when it's February, it's 12 degress out and there is a half foot of snow on the ground.
ON NOW! UNSPUN with AnnaZ and Mercuria!
6pm pdt/9pm edt
Click HERE to LISTEN LIVE while you FReep!
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During an orange alert. DUH!
BEVERLY -- They weren't terrorists -- they were just two guys looking to buy a plane.
The two men who visited Beverly Airport Tuesday evening wanted to make a purchase -- not plan a terrorist attack, according to the FBI.
"They were two Brazilian individuals, one was an airline mechanic, inquiring about an aircraft there they thought a relative in Brazil might be interested in," Gail Marcinkiewicz, an FBI spokeswoman, said last night.
Marcinkiewicz offered few other details, and it was still unclear why the men fled when questioned by airport workers.
The men, Brazilian nationals, were taken into custody at 7 last night and held overnight on Immigration and Naturalization Service detainers, State Police Sgt. David Paine said.
The men, who were not identified by police, will be held until their immigration status is determined. Police did not say where the men were apprehended, or whether they were living on the North Shore.
Until last night, law enforcement sources were mum on the investigation surrounding the two "suspicious" men who visited the airport around 5:30 Tuesday night.
Airport sources said two men who appeared to be of Middle Eastern descent went to Aviators of New England, a flight school and asked the owner if they could buy a crop-duster.
When questioned, the men jumped in a pickup truck with Massachusetts plates and left the airport. The owner then called police.
Contrary to information gathered from airport sources, Marcinkiewicz said the men weren't specifically interested in purchasing a crop-dusting airplane.
Crop-dusters have been linked to terrorist activity because they can be used to spread germ and chemical warfare.
"They inquired specifically about an airplane," she said, noting the matter was "resolved" and authorities determined "no terrorist-type activity" was involved.
Marcinkiewicz described the FBI's role in the investigation at the airport as limited, noting the bulk of the probe fell on a state police anti-terrorism unit. The matter was referred to the FBI's Joint Terrorism Task Force, however, Marcinkiewicz said.
The JTTF includes FBI agents, state troopers and representatives from local police departments, including Salem Detective Sgt. Michael Andreas, the department's terrorism intelligence officer.
While the men aren't considered terrorists, Andreas said the airport businessmen who alerted police to their presence Tuesday night "absolutely did the right thing."...< snip>
[my take-someone asked them about "visas" or "credentials" and they fled.]