BREAKING UPDATE: Official says US investigating whether suspicious packages were dry run for mail bomb plot

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) – Officials for FedEx say the company has confiscated a suspicious package in Dubai that was shipped from Yemen.

Memphis-based FedEx Corp. has embargoed all shipments from Yemen indefinitely. Company spokeswoman Sandra Munoz said Friday she could not estimate how many packages might be involved or discuss what was suspicious about the package.

She said the package originated in Yemen but referred all further questions to the FBI.

Munoz said other FedEx operations were running normally.

FBI spokesman Joel Siskovic in Memphis said security precautions put in effect previously led to the discovery. He would not elaborate.

(Copyright 2010 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

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By MATT APUZZO
Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) – A U.S. official says authorities are investigating whether a string of suspicious packages was a dry run for a plot to send bombs through the mail.

A suspicious package containing a toner cartridge with wires and powder was found during routine screening of cargo in the United Kingdom, prompting authorities to scour three planes and a truck in the United States on Friday.

Searches were conducted in Philadelphia, Newark, N.J., and New York City, but no explosives were found. All the packages believed to be suspicious came from Yemen and were being sent via UPS.

Yemen is the home of the al-Qaida branch that claimed responsibility for an attempted bombing of a U.S.-bound airliner on Christmas.

The official spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the ongoing investigation.

(Copyright 2010 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

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NEW YORK (Reuters) – Authorities were investigating “potentially suspicious items” on Friday on cargo planes that landed at airports in Newark, New Jersey, and Philadelphia, the Transportation Security Administration said.

“Out of an abundance of caution the planes were moved to a remote location where they are being met by law enforcement officials and swept,” the TSA said in a statement.

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By RANDY PENNELL
Associated Press

PHILADELPHIA (AP) – Law enforcement officials are investigating reports of suspicious packages on cargo planes in Philadelphia and Newark, N.J.

A law enforcement official briefed on the investigation said officials found something suspicious on a cargo plane in Birmingham, England. But test results for explosives were negative. The official spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the ongoing investigation.

Transportation Security Administration spokeswoman Kristin Lee says the planes in Philadelphia and Newark landed safely and are being swept by law enforcement.

The planes have been moved to a remote location so law enforcement officials can investigate.

Video from Philadelphia International Airport shows emergency vehicles around a UPS jet.
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Associated Press Writer Eileen Sullivan in Washington contributed to this report.

(Copyright 2010 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

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(CNN) — Some airports were on high alert Friday after investigators found a suspicious package aboard a plane flying from Yemen to Chicago when it stopped in London on Thursday night, a law enforcement source with detailed knowledge of the investigation said.

The suspicious package, which contained a “manipulated” toner cartridge, tested negative for explosive material, the source said, but it led to heightened inspection of arriving cargo flights in at least three cities — Newark, New Jersey and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and a UPS truck in New York.

Investigators were examining two UPS planes that landed at Philadelphia International Airport and another at Newark Liberty International Airport in Newark, New Jersey, said Mike Mangot, a UPS spokesman.

Authorities are focusing on flights coming from Yemen into the United States, according to the source.

The Transportation and Security Administration said authorities were acting “out of an abundance of caution.”

“The planes were moved to a remote location where they are being met by law enforcement officials and swept,” the administration said in a statement.

In Philadelphia, three people aboard one plane were removed from the plane and scanned with negative results, the Philadelphia Fire Department said. The type of material that may be involved is not known, officials said.

In Newark, investigators were examining another UPS plane, said Mike Mangot, a UPS spokesman.

And a bomb squad in New York City is responding to a report of a suspected explosive device inside a package aboard a UPS truck, the deputy police commissioner said.

UPS said it is cooperating with authorities, and its shipment is being removed from the aircraft.