400lbs of C-4 stolen

[MURP]

link

Dec. 19, 2005 — Officials are investigating the theft of 400 pounds of high-powered plastic explosives in New Mexico. The material was stolen from a bunker owned by a bomb expert who works at a national research lab outside Albuquerque, N.M.

ABC News has been told it's one of the most significant thefts of high-power explosives ever in the United States.

Agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives confirmed today they are investigating the large theft from Cherry Engineering, a company owned by Chris Cherry, a scientist at Sandia National Labs.

The theft was discovered Sunday night by local authorities. The thieves used blowtorches to cut through thick steel walls at the bunker, authorities told ABC News.

The missing 400 pounds of explosives includes 150 pounds of what is known as C-4 plastic, or "sheet explosive," which can be shaped and molded and is often used by terrorists and military operatives.

"It is a very dangerous material, we want to keep this off the streets," Cherry told ABC News.

Also, 2,500 detonators were missing from a storage explosive container, or magazine, in a bunker owned by Cherry Engineering.

Authorities have no leads in the theft and said there is no indication terrorism is involved.

The theft is one of the largest reported cases from a facility in the United States in the last decade ending 2004. During that time, a total of about 1,000 pounds was reported stolen from government facilities in 14 reported incidents. It is unknown whether there is any connection to terrorism.

A special agent at ATF said the incident was unusual because such high-powered material was targeted.

The missing material could potentially make numerous bombs.

[mussa]

great 

[Eagles 3x]

Be nice to get my hands on a couple ounces to use on a certain former 49er WR.

To all you gov. snoops:
I didn't type this.
You didn't see me type this.
You can't prove a thing.

[MURP]

hmmmmmmmm.

link

Security head visits
state laboratories

ALBUQUERQUE (AP) — Homeland Security Director Tom Ridge said Thursday that New Mexico's labs will play a role in keeping the country secure.

Ridge visited Sandia National Laboratories and saw some of the latest security tools developed there. Ridge and Gen. John A. Gordon, undersecretary for Nuclear Security and administrator of the National Nuclear Security Administration, also visited Los Alamos National Laboratory and viewed its technology Thursday afternoon.

''I'm now more convinced than ever that these national labs have a critical role to play,'' Ridge said after seeing a demonstration of Sandia-developed technology that included a couple of explosions.

''We've got some great minds at this facility,'' he added.

Sandia scientists demonstrated a few of their latest creations — including an explosive-dismantling device called the Percussion-Actuated Nonelectric Disrupter and an aqueous foam that reduces pressure of explosions and captures particles from chemical and biological devices.

The PAN Disrupter interrupts a bomb's internal gadgets and dismantles it before the bomb can detonate. It was developed by Chris Cherry and a team of Sandia scientists in the early 1990s.

It was used to disable the shoe bomb discovered on a passenger during a flight from Paris to Miami in December.

''PAN ripped the shoe apart enough so investigators could see inside it,'' Cherry said.

''We were very excited about that,'' he said.

Sandia also demonstrated a Sand Dragon Robot. The robot, fitted with an explosive-sniffing sensor, sniffed an area near an explosive for a few seconds before returning to its operator. Technicians then could remove the robot's filter for analysis.

Ridge took a turn operating the robot by remote control.

''We do need to look at technology as one of the ways we can help secure our homeland,'' Ridge said.

Security must start with individual communities, and New Mexico is fortunate to have the people at its labs working to protect it, Ridge said.

President Bush created the Homeland Defense post and named Ridge to it after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on New York and Washington.

Also present for Ridge's Sandia tour were Sen. Jeff Bingaman, D-N.M., and Rep. Heather Wilson, R-N.M.

Because of Sept. 11 and what has happened since, ''most of the country now understands more about the technologies developed here,'' Wilson said.

[Butchers Bill]

Bush probably broke in there...yeah, yeah...Bush did it!

IMPEACH HIM!

[ice grillin you]

c-4 to your door no beef no more

[hbionic]

Philly Forever...this may be the reason the cops don't give a shtein about your bike.

[PoopyfaceMcGee]

I'm glad it was stolen in the other corner of the country, at least.

[Diomedes]

disgraceful. 

[mussa]

the more we smoke or puff...the more dangerous....

[JTrotter Fan]

No indication of terrorist activity.  Cripes, who are they kidding?!  Who else would need to steal all that C-4?!  Idiots!

[Rome]

Great.  Little old ladies are searched at the airport for high explosives yet the places where the shtein is actually stored has security that could be compromised by a couple of dudes named Bubba using blow torches stolen from the local high school metal shop.

[ice grillin you]

"hold on"...."i hear somebody comin"....

[mussa]

u got a red dot on your head too......OH shtein! 

[SD_Eagle5]

I stole it, Happy Holidays