.Investigator: Bomb-sniffing dogs sent to Afghanistan, Iraq not trained using common explosives
WASHINGTON — The State Department's inspector general said Friday that bomb-sniffing dogs in Afghanistan and Iraq are not being tested properly and may not be able to detect explosives effectively.
The inspector general's review found that the companies hired to supply and train the animals were not testing them for all scents of the most commonly encountered explosives, increasing the chance that a dog would miss a bomb in a vehicle or luggage. That puts U.S. government personnel in embassies and other diplomatic outposts at risk, the inspector general said.
The companies — U.S. Training Center in North Carolina, a business unit of the company formerly known as Blackwater; and RONCO Consulting Corp. in Washington, D.C. also used expired or potentially contaminated materials for the scent tests, the inspector general's report said.
Representatives from RONCO and U.S. Training Center did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the inspector general's report.
The review was limited to three canine programs handled by U.S. Training Center and RONCO, which is owned by Wackenhut Services. The report does not say how many dogs each contractor provides.
Overall, the State Department uses nearly 200 bomb-sniffing dogs. And the report only offers a glimpse of the costs of these services, saying the State department pays $24 million a year alone for canine services at the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad.
The report faults the department's Bureau of Diplomatic Security, responsible for managing the canine program, for weak oversight. Investigators found that the contractors, not the bureau, were running the program and policing themselves.
During visits to Afghanistan and Iraq, the investigators did not meet any bureau personnel with expertise in bomb-sniffing dogs. "They depended upon the knowledge and expertise of the contractors to ensure all contractual requirements and other standards were met," according to the report.
And the contractors told the investigators "that no outside organization with expertise in explosive detection canines had ever reviewed their operations in Iraq or Afghanistan," the report said.
In comments printed in the report, the department's Bureau of Diplomatic Security says it is acting to improve the canine program and plans to hire an independent expert to ensure all the contract requirements are met properly.
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The inspector general's review found that the companies hired to supply and train the animals were not testing them for all scents of the most commonly encountered explosives, increasing the chance that a dog would miss a bomb in a vehicle or luggage. That puts U.S. government personnel in embassies and other diplomatic outposts at risk, the inspector general said.
The companies — U.S. Training Center in North Carolina, a business unit of the company formerly known as Blackwater; and RONCO Consulting Corp. in Washington, D.C. also used expired or potentially contaminated materials for the scent tests, the inspector general's report said.
Representatives from RONCO and U.S. Training Center did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the inspector general's report.
The review was limited to three canine programs handled by U.S. Training Center and RONCO, which is owned by Wackenhut Services. The report does not say how many dogs each contractor provides.
Overall, the State Department uses nearly 200 bomb-sniffing dogs. And the report only offers a glimpse of the costs of these services, saying the State department pays $24 million a year alone for canine services at the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad.
The report faults the department's Bureau of Diplomatic Security, responsible for managing the canine program, for weak oversight. Investigators found that the contractors, not the bureau, were running the program and policing themselves.
During visits to Afghanistan and Iraq, the investigators did not meet any bureau personnel with expertise in bomb-sniffing dogs. "They depended upon the knowledge and expertise of the contractors to ensure all contractual requirements and other standards were met," according to the report.
And the contractors told the investigators "that no outside organization with expertise in explosive detection canines had ever reviewed their operations in Iraq or Afghanistan," the report said.
In comments printed in the report, the department's Bureau of Diplomatic Security says it is acting to improve the canine program and plans to hire an independent expert to ensure all the contract requirements are met properly.
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