angelatc
04-30-2008, 10:35 PM
http://www.antiqueweek.com/Article.asp?newsid=706
So much for Homeland Security. They need the Accountants to tell them how the stuff is getting off the bases and onto eBay? I love hoe they manage to drop Iran in there....
You can’t buy German helmets with swastikas on eBay or a rusty 19th century Colt revolver. But bidders worldwide can purchase stolen U.S. military supplies and equipment, some of it illegal to sell and harmful to America’s security.
If eBay hasn’t been minding its own store, the federal government has, and what it found has sent some eBay sellers to prison.
On April 10, the results of a 15-month investigation were presented before a Congressional Subcommittee on National Security and Foreign Affairs chaired by John Tierney (D-MA). The findings revealed eBay and, to a lesser extent, Craigslist, have been serving as a place for sellers to fence stolen military goods, some of it going to foreign buyers to strengthen their country’s military capability.
In his opening statement, Chairman Tierney explained the investigation:
“Last summer, the subcommittee — on a bipartisan basis — asked the special investigators at the Government Accountability Office to begin an undercover operation into whether sensitive and stolen military equipment and supplies were sold on the Internet on such sites as eBay and Craigslist. We also asked GAO to investigate how such items were acquired and able to be put for sale online.
“We were concerned first about the possibility of sensitive military equipment being sold to would-be terrorists, criminals, or hostile nations to the harm of our troops abroad as well as the rest of us here in the United States.
“Second, we were concerned about tax-payer funded equipment being stolen or otherwise accounted for and sold for profit, especially with respect to any items currently in-demand by our service members fighting abroad.
“Unfortunately, the undercover investigators found not only significant amounts of stolen goods being sold for profit, they were also able to buy sensitive technology and equipment we wouldn’t want to fall into the hands of our enemies.
“GAO was able to buy, for instance, F-14 aircraft parts; sophisticated night vision goggles; infrared tabs worn by our troops to differentiate friend from foe; a complete, current-issue U.S. military uniform; nuclear, biological, and chemical protective gear; and body armor currently worn by our troops, just to name a few.”
Congressman Tierney told the committee that the only nation currently using F-14 fighter aircraft, and thus the only country looking for parts, is Iran. He said the night vision goggles sold on eBay, with their ability to read the infrared tabs, “could be used by our enemies to easily locate U.S. troops on the battlefield.”
More at the link!
So much for Homeland Security. They need the Accountants to tell them how the stuff is getting off the bases and onto eBay? I love hoe they manage to drop Iran in there....
You can’t buy German helmets with swastikas on eBay or a rusty 19th century Colt revolver. But bidders worldwide can purchase stolen U.S. military supplies and equipment, some of it illegal to sell and harmful to America’s security.
If eBay hasn’t been minding its own store, the federal government has, and what it found has sent some eBay sellers to prison.
On April 10, the results of a 15-month investigation were presented before a Congressional Subcommittee on National Security and Foreign Affairs chaired by John Tierney (D-MA). The findings revealed eBay and, to a lesser extent, Craigslist, have been serving as a place for sellers to fence stolen military goods, some of it going to foreign buyers to strengthen their country’s military capability.
In his opening statement, Chairman Tierney explained the investigation:
“Last summer, the subcommittee — on a bipartisan basis — asked the special investigators at the Government Accountability Office to begin an undercover operation into whether sensitive and stolen military equipment and supplies were sold on the Internet on such sites as eBay and Craigslist. We also asked GAO to investigate how such items were acquired and able to be put for sale online.
“We were concerned first about the possibility of sensitive military equipment being sold to would-be terrorists, criminals, or hostile nations to the harm of our troops abroad as well as the rest of us here in the United States.
“Second, we were concerned about tax-payer funded equipment being stolen or otherwise accounted for and sold for profit, especially with respect to any items currently in-demand by our service members fighting abroad.
“Unfortunately, the undercover investigators found not only significant amounts of stolen goods being sold for profit, they were also able to buy sensitive technology and equipment we wouldn’t want to fall into the hands of our enemies.
“GAO was able to buy, for instance, F-14 aircraft parts; sophisticated night vision goggles; infrared tabs worn by our troops to differentiate friend from foe; a complete, current-issue U.S. military uniform; nuclear, biological, and chemical protective gear; and body armor currently worn by our troops, just to name a few.”
Congressman Tierney told the committee that the only nation currently using F-14 fighter aircraft, and thus the only country looking for parts, is Iran. He said the night vision goggles sold on eBay, with their ability to read the infrared tabs, “could be used by our enemies to easily locate U.S. troops on the battlefield.”
More at the link!