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Sun Jian
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Armed couple detained at key military base
MIAMI
Mon Jun 14, 2010 11:48pm EDT
MIAMI (Reuters) - A man and a woman in a vehicle carrying weapons and military-style gear were detained on Monday for attempting to gain unauthorized access to a key military base in Florida, authorities said.
The suspects were stopped at a gate outside MacDill Air Force Base near Tampa and taken into custody after they were unable to show proper identification to enter the base, said Air Force spokeswoman Katherine Holt. She said military-style uniforms and weapons were discovered in the vehicle after the two were detained but added that she was unable to identify the exact type or number of weapons.
No explosives were found, said Holt, who added that she could not identify the suspects. She added that the suspects were still in custody hours after they were stopped and were being investigated by military police. The South Tampa base houses the headquarters of U.S. Central Command, which runs the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, and the U.S. Special Operations Command.
On May 19, an off-duty FBI agent shot and killed an army veteran after a confrontation and chase at the base. The veteran, whom Holt described as "disgruntled," had been visiting the base when the altercation broke out and the off-duty agent reportedly shot him in self-defense.
(Reporting by Tom Brown; Editing by Paul Simao)
