Man With Smoke Grenade Was Searched in S Korea

[struggle4progress]

By EILEEN SULLIVAN and MICHAEL R. BLOOD Associated Press
LOS ANGELES October 11, 2012 (AP)

South Korean security officials screened a man with a bulletproof vest before he got on a flight to Los Angeles, but they never detected a banned smoke grenade concealed in his checked luggage with a cache of knives, handcuffs, a gas mask and other weapons, a U.S. official said Wednesday.

Yongda Huang Harris and his carry-on luggage were thoroughly searched, but authorities found nothing suspicious and he boarded the flight, said a Homeland Security official briefed on the investigation. The official was not authorized to discuss the case publicly and spoke with The Associated Press on condition of anonymity.

Harris, 28, was arrested in Los Angeles last week during a stopover on a trip from Japan after U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers noticed the bulletproof vest. A search of Harris' checked luggage uncovered the smoke grenade and an array of suspicious items, including leg irons, body bags, a hatchet, billy clubs, a collapsible baton, duct tape and a biohazard suit ...

Harris is not cooperating with federal officials who are trying to determine why he was headed to Boston with the cache of weapons, authorities said. The smoke grenade was X-rayed by police bomb squad officers, who said the device fell into a category that is prohibited on board passenger aircraft ...

http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/smoke-grenade-carrying-man-searched-korea-17447988

[DollarBillHines]

1. So, what's the deal?

Damn! I wonder what that guy was thinking/planning.

I have this mental image of the guy packing his bag(s).

Wow.

[jberryhill]

2. I could understand it if he was flying to San Francisco

Either he was up to no good, or was going to have a heck of a fun weekend.

Except for the smoke grenade, which is still basically harmless, all the other items in checked luggage are fine.