Rood denies 'kidnapping':
By JIMENITA SWAIN,
Guardian Senior Reporter>>>
Nassau, Bahamas -
jimenita@nasguard.com:
US Ambassador John Rood denied claims yesterday that five men arrested in the United States on December 18 were kidnapped.
The men were all baggage handlers employed by Nassau Flight Services, who were arrested upon arrival in the United States, a move family members of the men called "kidnapping".
"These arrests were the result of a long-term investigation. It was an investigation that was being conducted by US law enforcement, as well as Bahamian law enforcement," Ambassador Rood said as he attempted to clear the air.
He made the disclosure at a press conference held at the US Embassy on Friday.
The Ambassador explained that the investigation originally came about when US officials discovered packages on airplanes in the United States during secondary inspections.
"It was clear that these packages and these suitcases had not gone through our pre-clearance facility, so we knew we had a breach," he said.
As a result of the breach, Ambassador Rood said, the information was taken to US law enforcement who then passed it on to Bahamian law officials, and they jointly performed an investigation.
"When I hear there are packages that are bypassing TSA (Transportation Safety Administration) security checkpoints and are bypassing pre-clearance it makes me very, very, very nervous. I can't stress that enough," he said.
He explained that he shared his concerns with regard to the security breach with Bahamian officials at the airport, but there was no disclosure made on the law enforcement operation. "Nobody wants The Bahamas to experience an increase in drug trafficking, and I don't think anyone wants The Bahamas to be looked at as an easy opportunity for someone to get a package on an airplane, especially airplanes bound for the United States," he said.
Ambassador Rood stressed that he believed that the Bahamas government understood the seriousness of the problem, especially in this time of terrorism with persons planting bombs or guns on board airplanes.
The ambassador said he was pleased with the arrest, but denied that it was a 'sting operation'. "I think it was merely the fact that there were indictments on individuals that we had evidence were involved in this trafficking operation. There were indictments on the individuals in the United States and when it was found out that these individuals were traveling to the United States they were arrested," he said.
Further, he said, their actions were consistent with international law. The five persons have been arrested and are being given protection like any other American citizen, the Ambassador stated. Those men who are facing US Federal Trafficking law infractions will be given opportunity to retain counsel once charged and present a defence at trial. He noted that plea bargains were also an option.
"If they are not guilty they will be set free," he stated. However, he made it clear that if those persons were convicted they would pay the price for the bad decisions they had made.
The next step, Mr Rood said, will be to get to the bottom of how the security breaches took place at the airport and strengthen the weaknesses in the system. "I think its important that we all work together... Aviation Authority, TSA, our Customs and Border Protection staff, law enforcement in The Bahamas- we work together to find out how this happened," he said. Mr Rood questioned how someone was able to circumvent US pre-clearance facilities and TSA operations at the Lynden Pindling International Airport.
In the meantime, Ladera Tony, wife of one of the accused men, told The Nassau Guardian yesterday that she and family members of the other men met with Minister of Transport and Aviation Glenys Hanna-Martin from 12 pm to 2 pm. However she said that the meeting was fruitless. A second meeting is scheduled for January 4, 2007 when the family members can direct all questions to representatives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Attorney General's Office.
30/12/06
