Six Moldovan 'uranium smugglers' arrested

[Ringel05]

Moldovan police have arrested six people suspected of trying to sell a type of uranium that can be used in nuclear weapons.

Those held wanted to sell more than 1kg (2.2lb) of uranium-235 with a value of at least $20m (14m euros; £12m), an official said.

The were conflicting reports as to whether the men were accused of trying to sell the uranium to an African country, or to an African national.

Four of the suspects are Moldovan.

Two others are from the breakaway Trans-Dniester region, one of whom also holds Russian citizenship, Vitalie Briceag, an official from the interior ministry, told reporters on Wednesday

BBC News - Six Moldovan 'uranium smugglers' arrested

 

[waltky]

Russian mafia dealing in weapons-grade black market uranium...

Crime gang trying to sell weapons-grade uranium
Wed, Sep 28, 2011 - BLACK MARKET: The US and Moldova are hunting smugglers in Trans-Dniester who offered 4.4g of uranium for sale and claimed to have 9kg more

Investigators following up on a nuclear sting in Eastern Europe suspect that a crime syndicate was trying to sell weapons-grade uranium to buyers in North Africa. Officials in Moldova, a former Soviet republic, said 1kg of highly enriched uranium remains in criminal hands and was likely in another country. Though that is a fraction of what is needed for a bomb, the investigation has provided fresh evidence of a black market in nuclear material likely taken from poorly secured stockpiles from the former Soviet Union.

US authorities have been aiding the Moldovans in the international search for a Russian believed to be the ringleader of the smuggling operation. They also are searching for a North African man who they believe attempted to buy the uranium in Moldova before fleeing the country. Neither suspect has been publicly identified. The North Africa link, though, has worried officials because terrorist groups such as al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb operate in the region. The concern is raised in a report prepared by the staff of Senator Richard Lugar, the ranking Republican on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. “Should the existence of a legitimate buyer (or middleman) from a region with a history of terror cells be confirmed, then the case would be substantially more alarming than other recent fissile material interdictions, where official agents were the sole potential buyer,” said the report, which was obtained ahead of its release yesterday.

The Associated Press has learned details of the investigation from the report and from US, UN and Moldovan officials. Some of the officials spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the investigation. Moldovan investigators, who had been trained by US specialists, set up a sting in June after learning of the ring operating out of Moldova’s separatist Trans--Dniester region. Undercover police bought the small quantity, pre-empting the North African buyer. They arrested six people and seized 4.4g of uranium that had been offered as a sample at a price of 420,000 euros (US$600,000). The sellers claimed to have 9kg more as well as a quantity of plutonium, according to Lugar’s report. The group wanted 23 million euros for the larger quantity of uranium, which would have been about a third of the material necessary to build a crude nuclear weapon.

It is not known whether the group had access to that much uranium. However, Moldovan prosecutors, who have interrogated the arrested suspects extensively, say they believe that the group still has at least a smaller quantity. According to US and UN officials, the sample of uranium oxide was traced to specific Russian enrichment facilities and was matched later with at least one earlier seizure of uranium. Nuclear forensic experts can analyze chemical traits of uranium and other radioactive material that can provide a kind of nuclear fingerprint that can be traced to known stocks.

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[editec]

Where'd they get it from?

As yet we're not sure.

Great, just great!

 

[Douger]

B soundin likes dem chickenz B cummin home ta roos.......SOON.

 

[Si modo]

Where'd they get it from?

As yet we're not sure.

Great, just great!

There are isotopic signatures that correlate well with specific processes, so it is traceable.

 

[editec]

Where'd they get it from?

As yet we're not sure.

Great, just great!

There are isotopic signatures that correlate well with specific processes, so it is traceable.

Yeah, I know Si.

That was kinda my point.

Perhaps this news item came out so quickly that as yet the source has not been traced.

Which means?

The folks who originally filched it from the Russians might have time to cover their tracks, or worse, sell much more of it quickly before their source dries up.

 

[Si modo]

Where'd they get it from?

As yet we're not sure.

Great, just great!

There are isotopic signatures that correlate well with specific processes, so it is traceable.

Yeah, I know Si.

That was kinda my point.

Perhaps this news item came out so quickly that as yet the source has not been traced.

Which means?

The folks who originally filched it from the Russians might have time to cover their tracks, or worse, sell much more of it quickly before their source dries up.

This happened back in the middle of summer and the material is in the investigators' possession, so I believe the concern about this few kgs going anywhere dangerous is lifted.

Just speculation on my part, it's likely of Soviet (Russian) origin, given the anarchist nature of the region in which the reports claim the smugglers originated and the fact that the region had plenty of Soviet depots at the time of their split from the USSR.

Just a best guess on my part - it's of Soviet origin. I imagine that if we hear an update on this story, it will only be after the investigators are confident that they have exhausted all leads to possible additional material that is out and about.