IP: Crackdown on hazmat-licensed truckers, esp Arabs

[David Farber <dave () farber net>]

> From: "Bridis, Ted" <Ted.Bridis () dowjones com>
> To: "'farber () cis upenn edu'" <farber () cis upenn edu>,
> Subject: WSJ: Crackdown on hazmat-licensed truckers, esp Arabs
> Date: Thu, 27 Sep 2001 08:26:33 -0400
>
> http://interactive.wsj.com/articles/SB1001543646858705720.htm
>
> States Are Checking Trucks
> Hauling Hazardous Matter
>
> By TED BRIDIS, GARY FIELDS and ANDREW CAFFREY
> Staff Reporters of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
>
> WASHINGTON -- The Department of Transportation urged state authorities to
> aggressively question truck drivers with permits to carry hazardous
> materials, following disclosures that people detained in the wake of the
> terrorist attacks in Washington, New York and Pennsylvania had obtained or
> sought such licenses.
>
> Massachusetts was among the earliest states Wednesday to begin the
> crackdown, stopping truckers hauling hazardous materials near that state's
> largest cities -- Boston, Worcester and Springfield -- or near large fuel
> depots. Investigators demanded copies of licenses and medical records and
> asked details about each driver's employer, shipment, routes and dispatch
> orders.
>
> Other states were expected to begin questioning drivers today. The
> interviews take about 30 minutes and often are conducted by state police
> during roadside traffic stops or mandatory weigh-station inspections. The
> questioning was expected to continue indefinitely and could delay some
> freight traffic.
>
> Officials acknowledged that drivers making interstate deliveries could face
> repeated interviews, and they said drivers who appeared to be of Middle
> Eastern descent would face particular scrutiny.
>
> "They'll be looking closely at the drivers, and if the person looks to be of
> Arab descent that would be enough" to begin the questioning, said David
> Longo, a spokesman for the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration.
>
> Law-enforcement officials have said the chief suspect behind the suicide
> hijackings is Osama bin Laden, who is believed to control a network of
> Middle Eastern terrorists from bases in Afghanistan.
>
> Last week, investigators revealed that at least one man allegedly linked to
> the suspected Sept. 11 attackers had a Michigan driver's license that
> allowed him to transport hazardous materials. U.S. Attorney General John
> Ashcroft told a Senate panel this week that the terrorist investigation "has
> uncovered several individuals, including individuals who may have links to
> the hijackers, who fraudulently have obtained or attempted to obtain
> hazardous-material transportation licenses."
>
> These roadside interviews, called a "level-three inspection," aren't
> unprecedented, but they will be conducted on an unusual scale under the
> federal requests.
>
> Wednesday's request from the motor-carrier administration, an arm of the
> Transportation Department, followed a warning from the Federal Bureau of
> Investigation ordering a "heightened state of alert" by the transportation
> industry because of what the FBI described as unconfirmed reports about
> threats involving shipments of chemical and biological weapons.
>
> The FBI warning asked for details of any suspicious activity, "including
> threats, unusual purchases [and] suspicious behavior by employees or
> customers."
>
> The U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Pennsylvania issued warrants
> for 20 people who it says fraudulently obtained trucking licenses, including
> 18 who also allegedly obtained licenses to haul hazardous materials. So far,
> nine of the 20 have been arrested. But an FBI official familiar with the
> investigation said last night that, unlike the man arrested earlier with a
> Michigan license, the people named in the Pennsylvania warrants don't appear
> to be connected to the hijackings.
>
> A law-enforcement official says it appears the truckers were involved in a
> scam in which they used false identification to apply for trucking licenses,
> then applied for the licenses to carry hazardous wastes because that would
> increase their pay.
>
> State motor-vehicle agencies apparently are receiving multiple requests from
> federal authorities for information on drivers with hazardous-materials
> licenses. A person at one agency said FBI agents visited this week and
> requested a printout of all such drivers.
>
> On Wednesday, the American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators, a
> Washington trade group, sent letters to its member state agencies asking for
> similar information. The association said it had been asked by the
> motor-carrier administration to compile the hazardous-materials license
> information from states to help the FBI.
>
> Write to Ted Bridis at ted.bridis () wsj com, Gary Fields at
> gary.fields () wsj com and Andrew Caffrey at andrew.caffrey () wsj com



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