May 26, 2007 5:59 pm US/Eastern

Inspectors: Fake Records Filed At Florida Airport
Customs Inspectors Claim They Were Ordered By Bosses To Falsify Records
Serious questions have been raised about airport security in Florida, after six customs inspectors at the Orlando Sanford International Airport have told federal officials that they were instructed to falsify passenger information.

The US Customs and Border Protection officers claim that in 2005, supervisors told them to falsify information typically gathered during direct interviews and inspections of international passengers or crew members, according to documents originally obtained by the Orlando Sentinel.

The Associated Press received the documents from federal officials Saturday.

The whistle-blowers, Selma Ocasio, Jose Vazques-Quinones, Eilliam Errico and three other inspectors who are not named in the report, allege that supervisors told them to falsify information entered into a computer database, such as race, length of stay and number of bags.

When questioned about the practice, supervisors allegedly said "things were done differently in Sanford."

The inspectors told federal officials that they were instructed to enter the false data because of increased traffic at airport.

The inspectors were also told to enter incorrect codes that would "falsely reflect that the passenger or crew member had been stopped, interviewed and bags inspected in connection with a suspicion of possessing contraband or engaging in unlawful activity," the report stated.

One agent entered the information without ever receiving any security clearance or training, according to the documents.

Customs and Border Protection spokesman Zachary Mann declined to discuss the case when contacted by The Associated Press on Saturday, but said the agency takes all allegations of wrongdoing seriously.

Nearly 20,000 customs officers inspect about 1.1 million visitors each day at the nation's 324 air, land and sea ports of entry. Customs officers inspect about 500,000 international passengers annually at the Sanford airport.

The six officers were agricultural specialists, employed to detect and stop introduction of animal and plant pests into the United States. The customs inspectors reported their charges of wrongdoing to the U.S. Office of Special Counsel.

"Passenger screening by (Customs and Border Protection) is one line of defense in our national security protections, which can ill afford cutting of corners," said Scott Bloch, of the Special Counsel office in a statement.

Airport spokeswoman Diane Crews said Saturday she had no knowledge of any employees who were falsifying reports.

"We would not want any document to be falsified at any location in this airport and in any operation," Crews said. "I don't have any knowledge of the situation with customs, the allegations or the investigation."

Customs officers are federal employees who report to their supervisors and are not under the airport's oversight, Crews said.

Since Sept. 11, The Department of Homeland Security absorbed several agencies, such as U.S. Customs Service and the Immigration and Naturalization Service, in an effort to improve national security.

In response to the investigation, Customs and Border Protection stated in another report that supervisors who fail to enforce proper inspections would receive "Letters of Counseling."

Plans are under way for a national inspections policy and officers from a field office in Tampa will perform quarterly visits to the airport to sample and witness data entries, the report stated.

Calls placed to the Transportation Security Administration by The Associated Press were not immediately returned Saturday.

This is the second security breach to hit central Florida this year. Orlando International Airport tightened its security in March when officials broke up an alleged smuggling ring that bypassed airport security checkpoints to send guns and drugs to Puerto Rico.


http://cbs4.com/topstories/local_story_146180309.html