Behind The Scenes – Transportation Security Laboratory
The goal at the Transportation Security Laboratory is to always remain at least one step ahead of any methods terrorists may have dreamed up for getting weapons onto a plane and then prevent it from ever happening. Here is another terrific article about some of the men and women quietly working behind the scenes to keep all of us a little safer.
LA Times – In the lab, cooking up bomb detectors
Eight years after the Sept. 11 attacks, the front line in America’s war on terrorism runs through a little-known federal laboratory where engineer Nelson Carey holds what appears to be a bratwurst in a bun.
“This is a Semtex sausage,” said Carey, as he pinched the pink, plastic explosive long favored by terrorist groups.
On his table lies a green Teletubby doll stuffed with C-4 military explosives, a leather sandal with a high-explosive shoe insert, an Entenmann’s cake covered in an explosive compound that looks like white frosting, and other deadly devices Carey and his colleagues have built. None have detonators, so they are safe.
“We let our imaginations go wild,” Carey said. “The types of improvised explosive devices are endless.”
So are possible solutions, at least in theory. That’s where the Transportation Security Laboratory comes in. Scientists here dream up ways an enemy might slip a weapon or a bomb onto a plane, and then try to build defenses to detect or counter the danger.
The work is part cutting-edge science, part Maxwell Smart.
Man Injured Handling Explosive Device, Possibly TATP
October 8, 2009 by Homeland Security NTARC News
Filed under Incident Reports
UPDATE:Benjiman Kuzelka is reportedly in serious condition and will be arrested when he recuperates. His brother, Grey Timothy Kuzelka, 21, was arrested and booked into the county jail. He had been free on bail since Sunday, following an arrest on suspicion of drug possession, sales and transport.
Their mother, Rebecca Kuzelka, 55, was also arrested.
More Details & Suspects Photos
Fox news is reporting that a Southern California man is being investigated after severely injuring his hand while handling an explosive device, possibly while attempting to make TATP.
TATP may have been at the center of an alleged New York City bomb plot targeting subways and trains and also is That is the same type of explosive used in a London subway bombing.
via Source.
From The LA Times
Federal and Riverside County authorities are investigating an explosion overnight at a Lake Elsinore home in which highly powerful explosives were used, according to a law enforcement source.
The blast occurred late Wednesday night at a home in the 30500 block of Audelo that was sometimes used for a day-care operation. A man in the home was seriously injuried, according to the source, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the investigation is ongoing.
Riverside County sheriff’s detectives, FBI investigators and bomb technicians and agents with the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives are taking part in the investigation.
The source said investigators were trying to determine if the explosive found at the home was similar to acetone peroxide, or TATP, the powerful explosive used in the 2007 London subway terrorist bombings. But there is no evidence at this time that the Lake Elsinore case in related to terrorism.
[Updated at Noon: Authorities detonated some of the explosives found in the house this morning. That blast was heard around the neighborhood.
Readily Available Chemicals Could Pose Terror Risk
Chemicals readily available at beauty-supply stores, pool supply shops, DIY home stores and other venues can be combined to produce explosives strong enough to knock down the structural support of a building, according to experts. My guess is that we will see increased (and needed) regulation of some of the more dangerous products. Although it’s difficult and extremely dangerous to manufacture explosive devices from these compounds, it poses significant risk.
Some may disagree, but if we’re going to regulate cold and allergy medications due to the dangers, how much more so should we regulate the chemicals used to produce TATP. TATP is a powerful explosive and used often by terrorists around the world. A very, very small amount (less than 1/60th of an ounce ), can cause significant damage. I would prefer to have oversight on the sale of these chemicals now, rather than at a time when we look back and ask why we didn’t do this.
Neal Langerman, chief executive officer of Advanced Chemical Safety, a consulting company in San Diego told the Wall Street Journal, “It takes specialized equipment, it takes bench chemistry skill well beyond high school to make this stuff without blowing your head off.”
Najibullah Zazi, the alleged terror suspect arrested last week in Denver is suspected to have made purchases with at least three unnamed associates in Colorado and had a recipe for triacetone triperoxide, an explosive known as TATP and made from hydrogen peroxide, acetone and a strong acid, such as hydrochloric acid.
Depending on the placement of a bomb, the ingredients and volumes allegedly purchased by Mr. Zazi could have made enough TATP “to blow out and bring down the structural support of a building,” said M. Bonner Denton, a chemistry professor at the University of Arizona.
[...]
Still, experts said it would be very difficult to make TATP, especially from the kind of weaker chemicals sold at beauty supply stores. The process requires cooking the chemicals to increase concentration levels. Prosecutors said this week FBI technicians found acetone residues in the vent above the stove-top in an Aurora hotel suite rented by Mr. Zazi.
via Read WSJ Article.
Storage Sites Searched for Bomb Materials In Terror Probe
September 22, 2009 by Homeland Security NTARC News
Filed under Incident Reports
Detectives were combing Queens storage facilities on Monday for stockpiled explosive chemicals that Al Qaeda terror thugs planned to use to bomb New York,according to the New York Daily News.
At the same time, the Daily News has learned that prime terror suspect Najibullah Zazi has confessed he was a jihadist hell-bent on murderous mayhem, the sources said.
NYPD investigators, in coordination with the FBI, hit chemical and fertilizer companies looking for customers who bought bulk and paid cash – and they were also showing up at storage centers in Long Island City.
Investigators believe they were going to use the units to mix chemicals for explosives.
“They’re full on, and still going full bore,” a counterterror official said of the bomb hunt, according to the report.
5 Arrested – Police Find Explosives And Video Of Turtle Being Blown Up
September 19, 2009 by national
Filed under Incident Reports
NY – Four young men and a teenager were detained by police after a search of a home outside Albany turned up explosives and a video of the group blowing up a turtle.
Albany County sheriff’s officials say they were searching the Knox home of a suspect in an Internet scam case Friday when they discovered guns, homemade bombs, bomb-making instructions and bottles of chloroform.
They say they also found a video in which the men strapped a pipe bomb to a snapping turtle and watched it explode.
Investigators say they don’t know why the men had the materials or what they intended to do with them.
They were still deciding how to charge the men.
Denver Terror Plot Suspect May Be Looking To Cut Deal
September 18, 2009 by Homeland Security NTARC News
Filed under Featured
UPDATED 10:33 PST 09/18/09
The New York Daily News is doing an incredible job reporting rapidly unfolding developments in a terror investigation that stretches from Denver Colorado to Queens New York.Today’s reports from the Daily News include the following items of interest:
- Lawyers for Najibullah Zazi are negotiating with federal officials for an agreement where he could admit receiving military training,but deny plans to injure any Americans
- Two men were picked up Thursday for questioning in New York, but then released.
- The Fbi is still following several of those involved and they know they are being followed.
- When the probe began this week 5 Colorado men cited as members of the cell were under a round-the-clock watch. That number had risen to as many as 12.
CNN is also features several new developments in their latest report including the following:
- A spokeswoman for Zazi’s attorney said Zazi began meeting in Denver with the FBI at 9 a.m. Friday for the third consecutive day, and was still there by nightfall.
- Zazi’s father Mohammed met for three hours Friday afternoon with the FBI, then returned to his home.
- Further in the report CNN cites a source that says there were plans for an attack, presumably in the New York area, where crowds are large and security screening for travelers who are not flying is lax.
- Two additional sources in the report, familiar with the investigation said that Zazi had video of New York’s Grand Central Terminal.
- A former counterterrorism official briefed on the investigation said bomb instructions were found but could not say where. The former official said backpacks, computers and maps were found during searches in the New York City borough of Queens, and field tests turned up positive for explosives.
UPDATE: The operative told Zazi what to say if stopped by police, and there is also a reference to a “wedding,” which American agents believe is a code word for an attack.
ABC News Report
ABC News is reporting on it’s website that the Denver man at the center of an alleged New York bomb plot, Najibullah Zazi, has admitted he has ties to al Qaeda and is in negotiations to plead guilty to a terror charge, a senior law enforcement official told ABC News.
Najibullah Zazi declines to answer questions after meeting with FBI in Denver.
The official said Zazi had received explosives training and his possible guilty plea would be part of a deal to cooperate with the government.
[...]
The plea negotiations were first reported by the New York Daily News.
A lawyer for Zazi, Arthur Folsom, called the reports “completely unfounded.”
From The New York Post
A suspected al Qaeda terrorist from Queens has reportedly admitted to the feds that he has ties to the group after being questioned for a third straight day.
Najibullah Zazi, 24, had contact with a known al-Qeida associate, Fox News Channel reported today on its Web side.
Earlier in the day, an official, who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the investigation is ongoing, would not provide details on the location or nature of those alleged encounter.
[..]
Zazi, who authorities claimed had once trained at a Pakistani terror camp, had bomb-making diagrams on a computer that he carried with him on a visit to the city, CNN reported.
A joint FBI-New York Police Department task force feared Zazi may be involved in a potential plot involving hydrogen peroxide-based explosives like those cited in an intelligence warning issued Monday.
From CBS 2 HD
Bob Strang is a terrorism expert who said the FBI’s intense pressure on Zazi’s family may have been what caused him to crack and make the partial confession.
“This has been a hot case, something the government has been focused on for a while and it is now just coming to a head,” Strang told CBS 2 HD.
The ties between Najibullah Zazi and al-Qaida are growing. A source who gets high-level intelligence briefings told CBS 2 HD that law enforcement officials have recorded a number of conversations between Zazi and a known al-Qaida operative in Pakistan.
The key parts of the conversation? The operative told Zazi what to say if stopped by police, and there is also a reference to a “wedding,” which American agents believe is a code word for an attack.
Sources said the formula for the explosive TATP was found in Zazi’s computer when they seized his car, and with President Barack Obama coming to the UN next week, the FBI felt it needed to act.
Denver Man Denies Ties To Terrorism – New York Terror Probe
September 15, 2009 by national
Filed under Incident Reports
Najibullah Zazi, a Colorado man whose visit to New York apparently set off government raids on several Queens apartments on Monday has denied having ties to al Qaeda or any other terrorist group.
“I have nothing to do with this,” said Zazi, 25, who was reached by telephone in Colorado on Monday and Tuesday. “This looks like it’s going toward me, which is more shocking every hour.”
Mr. Zazi said on Tuesday that he was contacting a lawyer, but he invited the F.B.I. to question him.
[...]
“I was hoping they’d come question me, give me a chance to question them, ask, ‘Why are you following me?’ ” said Mr. Zazi. “If they want to investigate, they can.”
He said he left Aurora, Colo., in a rented car and headed to New York to try to resolve an issue with a coffee cart that he said his family is licensed to operate in Lower Manhattan. A spokeswoman for the New York City health department could not confirm if the man or his father operated a mobile food cart.
Mr. Zazi said he was stopped at the George Washington Bridge by the authorities, who briefly detained him and searched his car. A city official confirmed that officers stopped a man at the bridge and searched his car, and that “everything was clean.” The official could not say what prompted the stop.
Mr. Zazi said he thought the police might be profiling him or suspected him because he has a beard and had rented the car. The next day, he said he thought his car had been stolen, but the police told him it had been towed. The following day, he said, he noticed he was being followed and called the police twice to complain.
Finally, he said, he cut short his stay in New York, deciding to fly back to Colorado on Saturday.
“It was too much for me,” Mr. Zazi said. “I said, ‘I can’t stay here, even for a minute.’ ”
Related Stories
FBI and Homeland Security Warn NY Police Watch For Explosives Materials
Denver Terror Cell Plotting Attack At Center of New York Probe
Joint Terrorism Task Force Raids Homes In New York Terror Probe
FBI and Homeland Security Warn NY Police Watch For Explosives Materials
September 15, 2009 by Homeland Security NTARC News
Filed under Incident Reports
The FBI and Homeland Security officials are warning local police departments to be on the look out for materials that could be used to make explosives. The warning came as officials investigate a suspected al-Qaida associate and raided three New York City apartments.
Investigators issued warrants to search the residences for explosives material but did not find any, according to a person briefed on the matter who was not authorized to discuss the case and requested anonymity.
The joint intelligence warning, issued Monday, lists indicators that could tip off police to homemade hydrogen peroxide-based explosives, such as people with burn marks on their hands, face or arms. The warning was obtained by The Associated Press.
TSA To Boost Screening For Powder Explosives
September 8, 2009 by national
Filed under Homeland Security News
The Transportation Security Administration said it will soon start additional screening for powder explosives at airport checkpoints but expects only a small percentage of powders will require the special screening.
TSA said it will begin using powder explosives detection kits at Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport and other airports around the country this week, following a pilot test of the kits in late 2008 at airports in Los Angeles, New York, Detroit and Washington, D.C. At about $145 each, the 1,250 kits distributed nationwide cost close to $185,000.Typical security checkpoint procedures will not change, the agency said.
Security screeners will use X-rays to determine which substances need additional screening.When substances are selected for additional screening, security officers will use a powder test kit to collect a sample and apply a solution to test for potential explosives.
Powders that are “determined to be a potential threat” will not be permitted past checkpoints or in checked baggage, according to TSA.
Pak Report – 25 Vehicles Fitted With Explosives Enter Major Cities
July 7, 2009 by national
Filed under World Report
Lahore Pakistan – Twenty-five explosive-laden vehicles have reportedly entered various major cities of the country, as the intelligence services launched search operations across all four provinces, a private TV channel reported on Monday.
According to the channel, the vehicles could target sensitive government installments and other important buildings.
The channel cited a notification issued by the Interior Ministry stating that suicide bombers along with the vehicles had entered Peshawar, Lahore, Rawalpindi, Islamabad, Quetta and Karachi.
The ministry ordered provincial authorities to immediately conduct search operations and impound the vehicles before any terrorist incident took place. The channel said the explosive-laden vehicles included a Shehzore pick-up van, an ambulance, a blue Pajero and seven Toyota Corollas.
This report has not been confirmed by Pakistan authorities.
Homeland Security Gives NYPD Radiation Detectors
July 6, 2009 by national
Filed under Homeland Security News
NYPD Radiation Monitor
The US Department of Homeland Security has given three state-of-the-art radiation detectors to the New York Police Department to patrol city streets in search of dirty bombs and other nuclear threats.
The 450,000-dollar worth Advanced Spectroscopic Portal Monitors will be placed in three SUVs on Wednesday at entrances to tunnels, bridges and tollbooths, the Daily News reports.
The detectors had been purchased by DHS’ National Nuclear Detection Office for use at the nation’s ports, but officials concluded they weren’t strong enough to penetrate ship containers, police sources said.
Officials believe they will be able to detect radioactive isotopes emanating from a dirty bomb in the back of a car.
“We think they’ll be useful getting hits on vehicles on the road,” a NYPD official said.
Recently, the department had also purchased 8,000 Dosimeters, pager-sized detectors to be given to police if there is a nuclear attack.
Outfitted in protective gear, officers would use the Dosimeters to find “hot spots” of radiation.
Additionally, sources said the NYPD will station a sophisticated radiation-detecting device at this weekend’s July 4 celebration at the retired battleship Intrepid.
The Thermo is used up to a dozen times a year and is stationed at the main entrance to a sensitive target.
Bombs Found Metro Manila, Terrorists Planning To Destabilize?
Is there an ongoing destabilization operation? Yesterday, a bomb was found at the Department of Agriculture (DA) in Quezon City, a day after the Office of the Ombudsman, also in Quezon City, was bombed.
Agriculture Secretary Arthur Yap told reporters the DA incident might be part of a concerted effort to sow destabilization or confusion.
A “suspicious package” was also found outside a condominium across Ateneo de Manila University along Katipunan Avenue in Quezon City.
President Arroyo and her family had once occupied a penthouse suite at the condominium – the One Burgundy Plaza. As of last night, police have not confirmed whether the package contained an explosive device.
Police suspect the DA and Katipunan incidents are related.
Witnesses told reporters the package was contained in a red belt bag that a security guard found outside One Burgundy Plaza at around 7 a.m.
The police blotter at Anonas police station showed the security guard had reported his find.
Witnesses said the package was found near an electric post between One Burgundy Plaza and Prince David condominium.
Paksitan – Terror Attack On Norwegian and Swedish Embassies Thwarted
June 28, 2009 by national
Filed under World Report
A man with two tons of explosives in his possession has been arrested in Pakistan’s capital Islamabad. According to reports the man had planned to blow up the Norwegian and Swedish embassies in the city.
In addition, the Hungarian, Czech and South African embassies were also among the targets for the man’s terrorist attacks, the Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet reports.
The newspaper quotes a central source as saying that the Swedish military presence in Afghanistan was the reason for the planned attack.
Also Norway is participating in the ISAF forces in Afghanistan. The Norwegian Foreign Office has declined to comment on the reports, but security at the Norwegian embassy has been stepped up.
One year ago the Danish embassy in Islamabad was attacked, and six people were killed.
Hat Tip – Infidels Are Cool
PATH Stations To Screen Passengers For Explosives
June 9, 2009 by national
Filed under Incident Reports
New security technology to detect threats like explosive devices will be tested at PATH train stations over the next month.
The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which operates the trans-Hudson River commuter train system, announced Monday that the pilot program will start June 10 and run through July 10.
The program will test passive millimeter wave technology, which can detect explosives hidden under clothing.
The Port Authority says all passengers entering a station where the testing is taking place will be tested, and anyone who does not want to be tested will have to use another station.
