DEA Agents Refuse To Turn Over ATF Guns Lisa Leigh Kelly, Reporter, KPHO CBS 5 News POSTED: 8:50 pm MST May 19, 2011 UPDATED: 2:32 pm MST May 20, 2011 http://www.kpho.com/news/27960138/detail.html PHOENIX -- In an Arizona drug bust last month the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration confiscated more than drugs. Federal agents accidentally came upon two giant garbage cans filled with assault rifles. The kicker: Some of those guns possessed by drug runners once belonged to the DEA's sister agency, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms. The federal drug agents discovered the AK-47-type assault rifles wrapped in cellophane and hidden inside two giant trash barrels. Agents believe the confiscated weapons were heading to drug cartels in Mexico. Problem is, a serial number on at least one of the weapons traces back to the ATF. . VIDEO: <http://www.kpho.com/local-video/index.html?grabnetworks_video_id=4703018> DEA Agents Refuse To Turn Over ATF Guns It was known as the "Fast and Furious" program -- a controversial gunrunning sting where the ATF allowed its own assault weapons to be sold on the streets. The hope was to track the guns as they passed through the hands of straw buyers and middle-men. The idea was to gain intelligence and take down a big-time Mexican cartel. Even some of the most experienced agents inside the ATF were uncomfortable with the idea -- especially after hundreds of the rifles disappeared. Then in December, some of the ATF guns were found in the hands of the bandits who opened fire on Border Patrol agents in Southern Arizona. Agent Brian Terry was killed in the shootout. And the "Fast and Furious" program was publicly exposed. Until then, not even the DEA knew about the gun operation. Now, sources told CBS 5 News the DEA is refusing to turn over the cache of weapons from its bust to the ATF. But an ATF agency spokesman dismisses any tug of war with the DEA, telling CBS 5, "We play well together." Even so, the entire operation is under fire. U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder has said the inspector general is investigating. "We cannot have a situation where guns are allowed to walk," Holder said. Congress wants answers, too. Sources said a gun store in Glendale -- the Lone Wolf Trading Company -- cooperated with the ATF and sold weapons to suspects. A store spokesman told CBS 5 News that every employee is "under a congressional subpoena," and unable to comment. Sources told CBS 5 this is all part of a sealed federal investigation. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ National Police Week May 15-21, 2011 LODD for 2011: 142 Tributes: http://www.nleomf.org/officers/tributes/ [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] ------------------------------------ -------------------------- Want to discuss this topic? Head on over to our discussion list, [email protected]. -------------------------- Brooks Isoldi, editor [email protected] http://www.intellnet.org Post message: [email protected] Subscribe: [email protected] Unsubscribe: [email protected] *** FAIR USE NOTICE. This message contains copyrighted material whose use has not been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. OSINT, as a part of The Intelligence Network, is making it available without profit to OSINT YahooGroups members who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information in their efforts to advance the understanding of intelligence and law enforcement organizations, their activities, methods, techniques, human rights, civil liberties, social justice and other intelligence related issues, for non-profit research and educational purposes only. We believe that this constitutes a 'fair use' of the copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the U.S. Copyright Law. If you wish to use this copyrighted material for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use,' you must obtain permission from the copyright owner. For more information go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtmlYahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/osint/ <*> Your email settings: Individual Email | Traditional <*> To change settings online go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/osint/join (Yahoo! ID required) <*> To change settings via email: [email protected] [email protected] <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [email protected] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
