Port of Miami on Heightened Alert
Sunday, January 07, 2007

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,242265,00.html

MIAMI — The Port of Miami on Sunday was in a heightened state of security after police discovered two men hiding in a cargo truck and a bomb squad was summoned to the scene, FOX News has learned.

The container truck was stopped near the cargo-area entrance to the port around 8 a.m. and the driver of the vehicle, who had valid port identification, was questioned by authorities.

"The driver of the 18-wheeler was apparently asked several questions — we're told routine questions — and at one point, he said he was alone," FOX News' Nancy Harmeyer said.

Police became suspicious and discovered two men hiding in the sleeper cab of the 18-wheeler. All three men are of Middle Eastern descent. The men are believed to be in the country legally and were being questioned by the FBI.

"At this time we don't know why they were here, what they were planning to do, or quite honestly even if the driver knew that the two men were back there," Harmeyer said.

The driver reportedly is of Iraqi descent and one of the other two is a Lebanese national; the third is also believed to be Middle Eastern and early reports stated authorities have a warrant out for one of the three but none of the detained is on a terror watch list, sources said.
The driver told officials he needed a day pass to deliver something, but it was unclear what that was.

At 1:45 p.m. EST, a Customs and Border Protection agent entered the truck, which was escorted by police deeper into the Port, possibly for X-ray screening.

"They're investigating what's inside the container," Miami Police Department Deputy Chief Frank Fernandez said.

"The information is preliminary," he said.

Weekends at the Port are busy, with heavy cruise ship traffic; on Sunday, six cruise ships were at the Port.