Man gets past Incheon security with smoke grenade

자료사진

LOS ANGELES - Korean security officials screened a man with a bulletproof vest before he got on a flight to Los Angeles, but a banned smoke grenade made it through in his checked luggage, along with a cache of knives, handcuffs, a gas mask and other weapons, a U.S. official said.

Yongda Huang Harris and his carry-on luggage were thoroughly searched, but authorities found nothing suspicious and he boarded the flight, said a Homeland Security official Wednesday who was briefed on the investigation.

The official was not authorized to discuss the case publicly and spoke with The Associated Press on the condition of anonymity.

Harris, 28, was arrested in Los Angeles last week during a stopover on a trip from Japan after U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers noticed the bulletproof vest.

A search of Harris’ checked luggage uncovered the smoke grenade and an array of suspicious items, including leg irons, body bags, a hatchet, billy clubs, a collapsible baton, duct tape and a biohazard suit.

U.S. officials were working with Korean authorities to determine whether Harris’ checked bag was screened.

Harris is not cooperating with federal officials who are trying to determine why he was headed to Boston with the cache of weapons, authorities said.

The smoke grenade was X-rayed by police bomb squad officers, who said the device fell into a category that is prohibited on board passenger aircraft.

Tom Blank, a former deputy administrator at the Transportation Security Administration, said the U.S. will likely look at whether the failure to detect the grenade on a U.S.-bound jet was a one-time lapse or part of a wider security vulnerability.

If the U.S. determines a country’s airport doesn’t meet U.S. standards, it can ask for stronger security measures and even prohibit flights from flying directly to the U.S. from that country.

“This clearly looks like an error. Something slipped through that should not have slipped through,” Blank said of the grenade.

Many of the other belongings authorities say they found in Harris’ luggage ? including the hatchet and knives ? wouldn’t violate TSA guidelines for property in checked luggage. Also, bulletproof vests and flame-resistant pants like the ones Harris was wearing aren’t listed among prohibited items aboard flights.

There is no indication that Harris, who does not have a criminal record, is linked to a terrorist organization or planned to damage the plane, and it’s not likely a smoke grenade could bring down the aircraft, the federal official said.

But the smoke grenade is banned from planes under the United Nations’ explosives shipping rules. Depending on the conditions when it is ignited, the grenade could fill the cabin with smoke or cause a fire, officials said.

Airport police said they do not believe the case constitutes illegal conduct under the Japanese domestic criminal code, but Japan may cooperate at the request of U.S. investigators.

AP