BOMB SCARE AT AIRPORT HIGHLIGHTS SECURITY CONCERNS

S E C R E T FREETOWN 000456

SIPDIS

DEPARTMENT FOR AF/W

E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/25/2019
TAGS: ASEC EAIR PINS PTER SL
SUBJECT: BOMB SCARE AT AIRPORT HIGHLIGHTS SECURITY CONCERNS

Classified By: Political/Economic Officer Amy LeMar for reasons 1.4 (b/
d)


1. (C) On November 8, an "electronic cigar" was found on an
inbound British Midlands (BMI) flight from London. The cigar,
found by a cleaning crew once on the ground in Freetown,
caused alarm because it was found hidden beneath a blanket
under a seat, with wires protruding from either end.
Breaching numerous security protocols, the cigar was turned
over the BMI staff on the ground and the flight then departed
for London several hours later. The cigar was eventually
given to the Sierra Leone Police (SLP) stationed at Lungi,
but after a considerable delay. It was later buried in sand
behind the SLP post.


2. (S) The cigar was confirmed by British SOCA and SIS
representatives to be clean, though the passenger it was
connected to raised some concerns: Abdeljelil Ayeb, a
Tunisian banker (DOB 02/06/1951, Ppt. T118496),traveled
alone from Heathrow with no baggage, and did not arrive at
the helipad for his scheduled flight from Lungi to Freetown.
It was later discovered that he was a guest of President
Koroma's, and visiting Sierra Leone only for an audience with
the President to discuss investment. According to British and
Sierra Leonean contacts, Ayeb is not a person of interest to
either intelligence services.


3. (S) While this incident was benign, it raises significant
concerns regarding the safety at both involved airports -
Heathrow and Lungi. British sources wonder how the e-cigar
was allowed on-board in the first-place, and why no one
noticed or red-flagged Ayeb's lack of luggage. On the Sierra
Leonean side, the BMI representatives breached protocol by
not immediately turning the cigar over to authorities and
failing to inform their own flight crew: both activities
allowed the flight to return to London on-schedule, but at
the expense of a thorough search of the plane, which would
have been required had the incident been reported in a timely
fashion. Sierra Leonean contacts are also concerned about the
confusion that ensued once the cigar was handed over to the
SLP, indicating that they panicked and did not follow their
own standard operating procedures for a potential incendiary
device.


4. (C) Comment: The British have reported the incident to
their own headquarters, while the Sierra Leoneans assembled a
high-level delegation of National Security Council
Coordinating Group members to visit and review the overall
security conditions at Lungi on November 19. Though the cigar
proved to be benign, this incident reveals how ill-equipped
the Sierra Leoneans would be in the face of a more sinister
threat, and that the international airlines wield
considerable autonomy in decision-making, at times to the
detriment of regulations and safety standards. Once compared
to an "outlaw town" in the Old West, Lungi Airport continues
to be a significant achilles heel in the Sierra Leonean
security apparatus: corruption is common, all-access passes
are cheap and readily available, and the only authority
figures are either on the take or ineffective. For any
criminal or terrorist looking for a location through which to
transit illicit goods or worse to European destinations, the
Lungi Airport may be ideal. End Comment.


FEDZER