Tuesday February 13, 2007
About 160 weapons and 160 computers belonging to the Federal Bureau of Investigation were lost or stolen over a 44-month period, a Justice Department watchdog said.
An average seven computers and weapons vanished each month between February 2002 and September 2005, according to a report by the department's inspector general.
But the figures are an improvement from the previous period, when 354 weapons and 317 computers were stolen or lost over more than two years for an average of 24 per month.
The inspector general's report, however, criticizes the FBI for being too slow to report the losses or thefts. Moreover, in 28 percent of the cases, the FBI did not know if computers contained sensitive information, it said.
"Without knowing the contents of these lost and stolen laptop computers, it is impossible for the FBI to know the extent of the damage these losses might have had on its operations or on national security," the report said.
While internal reports were made for 98 percent of the weapons disappearances, only 80 percent were referred to the Justice Department. Internal reports were made for 95 percent of computer disappearances, while Justice was informed about only 24 percent of the cases.
The FBI said the report showed progress but that it needed to do more to avoid losses and thefts.
"It is notable that the Inspector General has concluded the FBI has made significant progress in decreasing the rate of loss for weapons and laptops," it said in a statement.
But, it added, "We acknowledge more needs to be done to ensure the proper handling of the loss and theft of weapons and laptops, and the information maintained on them."
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