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Ned
08-25-2006, 07:48 PM
Whether or not the passenger was a terrorist, he certainly seriously endangered the aircraft, and at best he's an idiot. If the dynamite was old, it was very unstable and could have easily blown a big hole in the plane's fusilage, and brought it down. He needs to be prosecuted for recklessly disregarding, and endangering the lives of the passengers and crew of that aircraft, and the people in the airport.

Originally posted by CNN.com - August 25 2006
FBI: Dynamite found in luggage
U.S. student not involved in terrorism, U.S. officials say

(CNN) -- A college student was detained Friday after customs agents found what they suspected was dynamite in his checked luggage, but authorities said he was not involved in terrorism.

Authorities identified the man as Howard McFarland Fish, 21, a U.S. citizen from Connecticut. He was flying on Continental Airlines Flight 52 from Buenos Aires, Argentina, to Houston, Texas, which landed at 6 a.m. Friday, FBI spokeswoman Shauna Dunlap said.

"It has not been tested, but it's believed to be a half-stick of dynamite," Dunlap said of the item in Fish's luggage.

"The FBI Joint Terrorism Task Force responded and determined that it was not an act of terrorism and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents took Fish into custody. ICE is currently consulting with the U.S. attorney in Houston regarding possible criminal charges," ICE said in a statement.

The Associated Press reported the man attended LaFayette College in Easton, Pennsylvania.

Reports indicate that the man had bomb-making components in his luggage.

In Buenos Aires, Marcelo Sain, head of Argentina's Airport Security Police, told local television that authorities found "a Coca-Cola bottle with mud, and inside it was a tube with ammonium nitrate, a little bit of dynamite and a detonator," according to Reuters.

In Houston, KTRK-13 quoted law enforcement sources as saying that the man had a blasting cap, a homemade fuse and a quarter-pound of ammonium nitrate, in addition to the dynamite.

Mark Mancuso, spokesman for the Houston Airport System, said he could not confirm the allegations but that "some additional items of contraband may have been found."

Two law enforcement sources told CNN that the additional items may have been bomb-making materials. The ICE statement said only that he had "prohibited explosive items."

The man was going through a "typical inspection" at George Bush Intercontinental Airport when the suspicious item was found, Mancuso said.

After discovering the item, customs agents called police, and a bomb-sniffing dog "came over and alerted on the item," Mancuso said, calling the canine's tip "a pretty good indication they were explosives."

The passenger said he had been exploring mines in Bolivia and purchased the dynamite as a souvenir, Mancuso said. It was removed from the airport and taken to a downtown Houston lab for analysis, he said.

The incident caused only minimal disruption in a small area of the airport, Mancuso said. The flight continued on to Newark, New Jersey.Go to FBI: Dynamite found in luggage (http://www.cnn.com/2006/US/08/25/dynamite.plane/index.html) to read the entire article.

bodega
08-25-2006, 08:16 PM
Just a few minutes ago on the news, it was reported to be traces of elements from dynamite and the man claims he works with dynamite in his job. Who to believe?

Ned
08-25-2006, 08:24 PM
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(bodega @ Aug 25 2006, 08:16 PM) 35594</div>
Just a few minutes ago on the news, it was reported to be traces of elements from dynamite and the man claims he works with dynamite in his job. Who to believe?
[/b]
Hopefully we'll eventually know, but at this point, my trust of the Feds is waning. The 12 guys on the NWA flight have all been released and charged with absolutely nothing. The Indian government is demanding an apology from the Dutch government.

bodega
08-26-2006, 12:05 PM
News leads <_< The first one last night said traces of dynamite found, only to later say that it was a 1/2 stick of dynamite. Traces=1/2 stick? It makes me wonder if the reporters even read their copy before going on-air :huh:

weblet
08-26-2006, 12:10 PM
Nominee for a Darwin.

Ned
08-26-2006, 12:56 PM
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(weblet @ Aug 26 2006, 12:10 PM) 35618</div>
Nominee for a Darwin.
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For those who aren't familiar with the Darwin Awards: "The Darwin Awards salute the improvement of the human genome by honoring those who accidentally kill themselves in really stupid ways." Of necessity, the honor of winning a Darwin is generally bestowed posthumously.

Weblet, since this guy didn't die, and there wasn't even an explosion, I would think he could only get "honorable mention" at best, but a nomination seems very appropriate.

weblet
08-26-2006, 06:54 PM
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Ned @ Aug 26 2006, 12:56 PM) 35619</div>
For those who aren't familiar with the Darwin Awards: "The Darwin Awards salute the improvement of the human genome by honoring those who accidentally kill themselves in really stupid ways." Of necessity, the honor of winning a Darwin is generally bestowed posthumously.

Weblet, since this guy didn't die, and there wasn't even an explosion, I would think he could only get "honorable mention" at best, but a nomination seems very appropriate.
[/b]


OK, so get technical on me... I stand corrected --- Future Darwin nominee.

NW CTC
08-30-2006, 05:56 PM
I think we could all agree that it would be accurate to describe this fellow as "bucking for a Darwin".

Commenting on reports that the traveler was a college student, my husband observed that it this did tend to argue in favor of tightenting college admission standards.

And while, yes, his actions were incredibly stupid, this wasn't quite as bad as the grandmother from Alaska who packed a loaded pistol in her luggage a few years ago. Fortunately, when the gun went off in the cargo hold the seat which the bullet lodged in was unoccupied. :o

weblet
08-30-2006, 06:27 PM
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(NW CTC @ Aug 30 2006, 05:56 PM) 36017</div>
And while, yes, his actions were incredibly stupid, this wasn't quite as bad as the grandmother from Alaska who packed a loaded pistol in her luggage a few years ago. Fortunately, when the gun went off in the cargo hold the seat which the bullet lodged in was unoccupied. :o
[/b]

Ouch. Although I could imagine a couple of objectionable people in the seat... The thought makes me :D .