In an interview last week, an officer with the U.S. Customs and Border Protection Department told KGTV reporter Mitch Blacher that “weapons of mass effect” had been found in the San Diego area (video above).
Al Hallor, San Diego’s assistant port director, answered “Yes” when Blacher asked him if “weapons of mass effect” had been found within U.S. borders. Hallor was quickly cut off by a government publicist before he could get more specific, though.
While Hallor later stated that such weapons had not been found at the port of San Diego, he did say “our partner agencies have caught items like that.”
A Homeland Security spokesperson contacted KGTV, an ABC-affiliate in San Diego, and suggested that Hallor misspoke during the interview because he was nervous. The spokesperson made it clear that nuclear devices have never been found within the country but, according to Blacher, she would not give any information about other sorts of “weapons of mass effect,” including dirty bombs and chemical weapons.
KGTV has gone into “continuing coverage” mode after originally airing Hallor’s comments last week. On Monday, the station aired a follow-up report from Blacher in which he quotes a spokesperson for California congressman Darrell Issa, who said, “We want to insure that we have the highest possible threshold for port security and that’s an ongoing priority.”