Iraq has spent a total of £52 million on 1,500 bomb detectors that are about as effective as waving your hand over a bag. Someone has been arrested.
The boss of a British company that has sold million of dollars worth of “bomb detectors” to Iraq’s security forces has been arrested on suspicion of fraud.
Jim McCormick, 53, the managing director of ATSC which is based in a former dairy in Sparkford, Somerset, has been questioned by detectives from Avon and Somerset Police after a complaint that he misrepresented the devices.
In November, Mr McCormick, a former Merseyside police officer, told The Times that his devices, which consist of little more than a telescopic antenna on a molded plastic handle, are able to detect explosives in the same way as a dowsing rod finds water.
Is fraud enough of a charge. This is reckless endangerment of life. The owner is quoted by The Times suggesting the upgrade might solve the problem:
“We have been dealing with doubters for ten years. One of the problems we have is that the machine does look a little primitive. We are working on a new model that has flashing lights.”
Ahh, flashing lights!