US ‘dirty bomb’ sting shows risk
‘US investigators posing as businessmen were easily able to obtain a licence to buy enough nuclear material to make a small “dirty bomb”, Congress has heard.
The team, who set up a bogus company, said the operation exposed serious flaws in the way the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) approves licences.
It took only four weeks and some phone calls and faxes to get the document.
The NRC says it has already taken steps to address the problem. The sting was carried out at the request of Congress.
Investigators from the Government Accountability Office (GAO) said they had not even had to leave their desks to acquire the licence.’
