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CNN Live At Daybreak

One Missile, Three Arrests

Aired August 13, 2003 - 05:04   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: One missile, three arrests. U.S. intelligence and law enforcement officials are patting themselves on the back this morning. They have arrested an alleged arms dealer and two others in connection with a plot to smuggle a shoulder fired missile into the United States.
Jeanne Meserve has more for you.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEANNE MESERVE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Authorities removing potential evidence from a New York business Tuesday afternoon, one chapter in an unfolding international drama. At the center, a Russian SA-18 shoulder fired missile capable of shooting down a commercial jetliner.

JOSEPH CIRINCIONE, CARNEGIE ENDOWMENT FOR INTERNATIONAL PEACE: Your basic SA-7 is a shoulder fired rocket with an infrared sensor in it that guides itself to the plume of a jet airplane. But those infrared sensors can be jammed. This Igla missile, an SA-18, is an updated version of the SA-7 that helps defeat some of those defensive measures.

MESERVE: A senior government official confirms that Hetmah Lakani (ph), a British citizen of Indian descent, has been arrested. Government sources say he is an international arms dealer who has sold weapons to al Qaeda in the past. Months ago, he puts out the word that he can obtain a shoulder fired missile. U.S. agents poising as Muslim extremists offer to buy. Russian authorities hear the dealer is shopping in their country for the missile. Their undercover agents meet with him in Moscow and St. Petersburg, and with the knowledge of U.S. authorities, sell him an inert SA-18.

The dealer, not knowing the explosives have been removed, ships the missile to the U.S. under the eye of U.S. authorities. It ends up in Newark, New Jersey. The dealer flies to the U.S. over the weekend to complete the deal and is arrested Tuesday afternoon in Newark. Later Tuesday, two gem dealers are arrested at this building in New York. They allegedly took care of the cash side of the transaction. U.S. officials say search warrants for additional evidence were executed in Britain.

MICHAEL O'HANLON, BROOKINGS INSTITUTION: There are two things to say here. One is this was very good work by American and foreign intelligence. But secondly, it takes a little bit of luck to find this kind of an operation while it's being hatched, and you can't always get lucky. MESERVE: Al Qaeda's November attempt to shoot down an Israeli airliner over Mombassa, Kenya with a shoulder fired missile was a wake up call for U.S. officials who are now pushing international efforts to stop the flow of missiles to terrorists. An inter-agency team is evaluating the vulnerability of airports in the U.S. and overseas, and eight government contractors are developing detailed plans for more effective and affordable anti-missile technology that could be used to protect U.S. commercial jetliners.

(on camera): More details are likely to emerge Wednesday when the three men appear in court and documents are unsealed. Meanwhile, U.S. officials are emphasizing that there is no intelligence indicating a specific or imminent threat to U.S. commercial aircraft from shoulder fired missiles.

Jean Meserve, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: As Jeanne Meserve pointed out, the alleged plot had an international flair to it. The suspected British arms dealer allegedly purchased that missile in Russia.

We want to check out that connection now.

Live to Moscow and our bureau chief there, Jill Dougherty -- the Russians were in on this all along, though, weren't they -- Jill?

JILL DOUGHERTY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: They were, Carol. And, you know, this is a concern, obviously, to the United States, but it's a concern, too, of Russia, also, because you have to remember, here in Chechnya in that breakaway republic in the south, these missiles, these missiles, this specific type of missile and others that are similar, have been used to shoot down military helicopters. So it's nothing new for the Russians.

COSTELLO: Tell us more about how the missile got from Russia into the United States.

DOUGHERTY: Well, as we understand the story, a, like a mock up of this that looked real, of course, perhaps one that's used for training, was provided by the Russians with the knowledge of the United States. But it was not able to be fired. And that is the weapon that was transported to the United States and found in New Jersey.

Now, you have to point out, I've been talking with experts here who have pointed out that these weapons, there are literally thousands, thousands of them. Back in the old Soviet days, they were produced. And they are still in the arsenals of the members of the former Soviet Union, the countries that became independent. So they're all over there, sometimes with very little control.

And then even here in Russia, in the military, you can find crooked people, soldiers desperate for money or just people who want to make a lot of money who are willing to sell things like this. And that could be how this -- they expected to be able to buy this weapon.

COSTELLO: And I guess the scary part about all of this is we don't know if any real missiles got into the United States or got into any other country.

DOUGHERTY: That's a very good point, Carol. It's virtually impossible to know because these things are very small. We're, again, they're shoulder fired. they're really smaller than a bazooka. They fit on your shoulder, very light, probably about 30 pounds, 40 pounds at the very most, and very effective. So they could be smuggled quite easily and there are, as we said, hundreds of thousands all over the world.

So -- and they're not that expensive. About $100,000 is the report about the going rate to buy these things.

COSTELLO: Jill Dougherty live from Moscow this morning.

Going on about what Jill just told you about, the shoulder fired missile, if you have any doubts about how dangerous they can be, listen to this. The head of the Transportation Security Administration, James Loy, says that since 1978, 35 shoulder launched missile attacks have brought down 24 civilian planes, killing as many as 500 people. Loy says all of the attacks came in war torn areas, including Afghanistan, Africa and Asia, and involved rebel groups.

Last year in Kenya, though, two missiles believed to have been fired by al Qaeda narrowly missed an Israeli airliner. Also last year, security guards at an air based used by the U.S. military in Saudi Arabia found a missile tube two miles from a runway. The tube was found intact, indicating the missile either misfired or was not fired.

When you get to your office this morning, be sure to log onto cnn.com for more details on this alleged missile plot, the international intrigue and all of that. The AOL keyword: CNN.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com






Aired August 13, 2003 - 05:04   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: One missile, three arrests. U.S. intelligence and law enforcement officials are patting themselves on the back this morning. They have arrested an alleged arms dealer and two others in connection with a plot to smuggle a shoulder fired missile into the United States.
Jeanne Meserve has more for you.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEANNE MESERVE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Authorities removing potential evidence from a New York business Tuesday afternoon, one chapter in an unfolding international drama. At the center, a Russian SA-18 shoulder fired missile capable of shooting down a commercial jetliner.

JOSEPH CIRINCIONE, CARNEGIE ENDOWMENT FOR INTERNATIONAL PEACE: Your basic SA-7 is a shoulder fired rocket with an infrared sensor in it that guides itself to the plume of a jet airplane. But those infrared sensors can be jammed. This Igla missile, an SA-18, is an updated version of the SA-7 that helps defeat some of those defensive measures.

MESERVE: A senior government official confirms that Hetmah Lakani (ph), a British citizen of Indian descent, has been arrested. Government sources say he is an international arms dealer who has sold weapons to al Qaeda in the past. Months ago, he puts out the word that he can obtain a shoulder fired missile. U.S. agents poising as Muslim extremists offer to buy. Russian authorities hear the dealer is shopping in their country for the missile. Their undercover agents meet with him in Moscow and St. Petersburg, and with the knowledge of U.S. authorities, sell him an inert SA-18.

The dealer, not knowing the explosives have been removed, ships the missile to the U.S. under the eye of U.S. authorities. It ends up in Newark, New Jersey. The dealer flies to the U.S. over the weekend to complete the deal and is arrested Tuesday afternoon in Newark. Later Tuesday, two gem dealers are arrested at this building in New York. They allegedly took care of the cash side of the transaction. U.S. officials say search warrants for additional evidence were executed in Britain.

MICHAEL O'HANLON, BROOKINGS INSTITUTION: There are two things to say here. One is this was very good work by American and foreign intelligence. But secondly, it takes a little bit of luck to find this kind of an operation while it's being hatched, and you can't always get lucky. MESERVE: Al Qaeda's November attempt to shoot down an Israeli airliner over Mombassa, Kenya with a shoulder fired missile was a wake up call for U.S. officials who are now pushing international efforts to stop the flow of missiles to terrorists. An inter-agency team is evaluating the vulnerability of airports in the U.S. and overseas, and eight government contractors are developing detailed plans for more effective and affordable anti-missile technology that could be used to protect U.S. commercial jetliners.

(on camera): More details are likely to emerge Wednesday when the three men appear in court and documents are unsealed. Meanwhile, U.S. officials are emphasizing that there is no intelligence indicating a specific or imminent threat to U.S. commercial aircraft from shoulder fired missiles.

Jean Meserve, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: As Jeanne Meserve pointed out, the alleged plot had an international flair to it. The suspected British arms dealer allegedly purchased that missile in Russia.

We want to check out that connection now.

Live to Moscow and our bureau chief there, Jill Dougherty -- the Russians were in on this all along, though, weren't they -- Jill?

JILL DOUGHERTY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: They were, Carol. And, you know, this is a concern, obviously, to the United States, but it's a concern, too, of Russia, also, because you have to remember, here in Chechnya in that breakaway republic in the south, these missiles, these missiles, this specific type of missile and others that are similar, have been used to shoot down military helicopters. So it's nothing new for the Russians.

COSTELLO: Tell us more about how the missile got from Russia into the United States.

DOUGHERTY: Well, as we understand the story, a, like a mock up of this that looked real, of course, perhaps one that's used for training, was provided by the Russians with the knowledge of the United States. But it was not able to be fired. And that is the weapon that was transported to the United States and found in New Jersey.

Now, you have to point out, I've been talking with experts here who have pointed out that these weapons, there are literally thousands, thousands of them. Back in the old Soviet days, they were produced. And they are still in the arsenals of the members of the former Soviet Union, the countries that became independent. So they're all over there, sometimes with very little control.

And then even here in Russia, in the military, you can find crooked people, soldiers desperate for money or just people who want to make a lot of money who are willing to sell things like this. And that could be how this -- they expected to be able to buy this weapon.

COSTELLO: And I guess the scary part about all of this is we don't know if any real missiles got into the United States or got into any other country.

DOUGHERTY: That's a very good point, Carol. It's virtually impossible to know because these things are very small. We're, again, they're shoulder fired. they're really smaller than a bazooka. They fit on your shoulder, very light, probably about 30 pounds, 40 pounds at the very most, and very effective. So they could be smuggled quite easily and there are, as we said, hundreds of thousands all over the world.

So -- and they're not that expensive. About $100,000 is the report about the going rate to buy these things.

COSTELLO: Jill Dougherty live from Moscow this morning.

Going on about what Jill just told you about, the shoulder fired missile, if you have any doubts about how dangerous they can be, listen to this. The head of the Transportation Security Administration, James Loy, says that since 1978, 35 shoulder launched missile attacks have brought down 24 civilian planes, killing as many as 500 people. Loy says all of the attacks came in war torn areas, including Afghanistan, Africa and Asia, and involved rebel groups.

Last year in Kenya, though, two missiles believed to have been fired by al Qaeda narrowly missed an Israeli airliner. Also last year, security guards at an air based used by the U.S. military in Saudi Arabia found a missile tube two miles from a runway. The tube was found intact, indicating the missile either misfired or was not fired.

When you get to your office this morning, be sure to log onto cnn.com for more details on this alleged missile plot, the international intrigue and all of that. The AOL keyword: CNN.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com