www.washtimes.com/national/20040426-011652-7502r.htm
Security guard Joseph Chavez was at the post at the time and reported that the car "ran his post at a high rate of speed," the report said. The white Escort, rented in Colorado, was stopped a short distance from the post by three Los Alamos security police on Pajarito Road. The diplomats were questioned, and their car was searched. Bo identified themselves as Chinese diplomats posted to the consulate in Los Angeles. Kevin Roark, a spokesman for Los Alamos, confirmed that the incident took place and said no apparent compromise of security occurred. Pajarito Road also is the site of two sensitive facilities, Mr. One is the Critical Assembly Facility known as Technical Area-18, and the other is the Plutonium Research Facility, known as Technical Area-55. Both facilities are used for classified nuclear-weapons activities at Los Alamos, part of the Energy Department's nuclear-weapons program. They were briefly questioned as to what they were up to. Their vehicle was searched, and after that, they were promptly escorted off the road," Mr. Chinese diplomats are barred from traveling outside a 25-mile radius of their embassy or consulate and must obtain permission from the State Department before any other travel. Xiao Mei, a spokeswoman for the Chinese Consulate in Los Angeles, said the two diplomats were visiting New Mexico in preparation for the visit to Santa Fe by a Chinese official. Miss Xiao said she did not know whether the two men had gone to the Los Alamos laboratory, but they might have been trying to visit a museum at the facility. Lee denied being a spy but was convicted of mishandling classified information, including top-secret computer tapes that were never found. Such information is useful for other intelligence-gathering activities, the officials said, speaking on condition of anonymity. The diplomats also might have been trying to recover material left by an agent or planning to meet with an agent, the officials said. Roark said the guard post was one of several recently added to the Los Alamos complex as part of post-September 11 security upgrades. It was the second time in the past six months that Chinese diplomats based in Los Angeles ended up in legal trouble. Late last year, a Chinese official posted to the Los Angeles consulate was charged with speeding as he drove more than 100 mph in San Bernardino County. The incident resulted in a diplomatic protest note being sent to the Chinese Embassy in Washington.
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