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NYPD Alert Warns of Missing Explosives

By Rocco Parascandola
Staff Writer

November 22, 2003, 7:13 PM EST


The New York Police Department has issued a department-wide alert for cops to be on the watch for explosives that disappeared from Newark International Airport more than two months ago, Newsday has learned.

The explosive, Primasheet, a plastic bonded explosive with enough power to bring down a jetliner, according to some experts, disappeared in early September. The material was last seen while cops in the Port Authority Police Department's K-9 Unit were using it to train bomb-sniffing dogs aboard a Continental Airlines jet, according to the Port Authority.

Port Authority officials could not be reached for comment yesterday. At the time the Primasheet was discovered to be missing, they said they did not think terrorists had anything to do with its disappearance and that their investigation was focused on who signed the explosive in and out of the agency's training center at the Newark airport.

On Monday -- after simultaneous terror attacks outside two Istanbul synagogues that killed 20 and injured 300, and with the holy month of Ramadan coming to a close -- the NYPD issued a formal operations order about the missing Primasheet.

The order describes the missing explosive as a 1/2-inch-thick slab of sheets. Each sheet measures 4 inches square.

The explosive "requires the use of a commercial or military detonator in order to function," the order says.

The Port Authority earlier said the explosive material was last accounted for on Sept. 4, when it was used aboard the Continental aircraft. Its disappearance was not realized until a Sept. 23 internal audit, officials said.

Since the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, if there is a breach in security or a matter that raises concern terrorists could be involved, various law enforcement agencies in the region are notified as quickly as possible. The New York Police Department made announcements about the missing Primasheet at roll call for up to 10 consecutive days shortly after the Port Authority realized it was missing.

Primasheet, made by Valley Associates Inc. in Ontario, Canada, is waterproof and moisture-proof. It is effective in demolition work and can be applied in strips directly on the target.

The fox guarding the henhouse. I'll take care of my own safety, thank you.

And for you smart asses, I've trained my Yorkie to sniff out bombs. I put him in his doggie tote and carry him on the plane and turn him loose, so there!