ATF does it again.

[Streck-Fu]

Drug sting with a fake storefront results in a robbery, stolen ATF, and the agency renegs on lease and property damages....

Maybe we can call it Fast and Furious Part Deaux....LINK (http://www.jsonline.com/watchdog/watchdogreports/atfs-milwaukee-sting-operation-marred-by-mistakes-failures-mu8akpj-188952581.html?abc=Ct5vpWpS)

Excerpt:

A store calling itself Fearless Distributing opened early last year on an out-of-the-way street in Milwaukee's Riverwest neighborhood, offering designer clothes, athletic shoes, jewelry and drug paraphernalia.

Those working behind the counter, however, weren't interested in selling anything.

They were undercover agents from the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives running a storefront sting aimed at busting criminal operations in the city by purchasing drugs and guns from felons.

But the effort to date has not snared any major dealers or taken down a gang. Instead, it resulted in a string of mistakes and failures, including an ATF military-style machine gun landing on the streets of Milwaukee and the agency having $35,000 in merchandise stolen from its store, a Journal Sentinel investigation has found.

When the 10-month operation was shut down after the burglary, agents and Milwaukee police officers who participated in the sting cleared out the store but left behind a sensitive document that listed names, vehicles and phone numbers of undercover agents.

And the agency remains locked in a battle with the building's owner, who says he is owed about $15,000 because of utility bills, holes in the walls, broken doors and damage from an overflowing toilet.

The sting resulted in charges being filed against about 30 people, most for low-level drug sales and gun possession counts. But agents had the wrong person in at least three cases. In one, they charged a man who was in prison - as a result of an earlier ATF case - at the time agents said he was selling drugs to them.

Other cases reveal that the agency's operation was paying such high prices that some defendants bought guns from stores such as Gander Mountain and sold them to the agents for a quick profit. The mistakes by agents are troubling and suggest a lack of planning and oversight, according to veterans of the ATF, who learned about the operation from the Journal Sentinel. The newspaper combed through police reports, court documents, social media and materials left behind by the ATF, all of which provide a rare view inside an undercover federal operation.

[Oldrotorhead]

"When the 10-month operation was shut down after the burglary, agents and Milwaukee police officers who participated in the sting cleared out the store but left behind a sensitive document that listed names, vehicles and phone numbers of undercover agents."

Maybe the landlord should sell the list to the highest bidder. The ATF left it so they must not want it.:rolleyes:

[Badger52]

How about operation slow and stupid.You are sooo lucky I just put my coffee down.
lmao

[Surgicalcric]

And these are the caliber of law enforcement officers we are suppose to trust to keep us safe.

I will retain that responsibility myself thank you.

[Doc Diego]

Sounds like they used the same playbook the FBI used in Benghazi! Operation Slow and Stupid indeed.

[Streck-Fu]

This is my favorite part....

The ATF has balked, saying there was less than $3,200 in damage and telling Salkin to return the security deposit. They told him to file a claim with the federal government and warned him to stop contacting them.

In an email to Salkin, ATF attorney Patricia Cangemi wrote, "If you continue to contact the Agents after being so advised your contacts may be construed as harassment under the law. Threats or harassment of a Federal Agent is of grave concern. Utilizing the telephone or a computer to perpetrate threats or harassment is also a serious matter."


And then there is this gem:

But during the roundup, ATF arrested and sought charges against three defendants who proved to be the wrong people, even though they had video of the defendants.
..........
"Under those circumstances, we want to make sure we get the right one," she said. "You don't want to charge the wrong person. You certainly don't want to prosecute the wrong person. That is not something you strive for."

Nothing like striving for mere competence... :rolleyes:

[35NCO]

The part that was most concerning about the story was the theft of the select Fire Colt M4, complete with ammo and eight 30 round mags. I have to wonder if that is one of these “assault weapons” being used in crimes that these inner city police keep speaking about.

My next biggest concern is the DOJ report on lost weapons for the ATF states that 75 have been lost over a period of years. That is only those reported. How many FULL AUTO weapons is the ATF putting onto the streets of cities and not recovering them?

That would seem to be a great argument for the NEED and USE of a normal citizen to require "assault weapons" and "high capacity" magazines. The citizens need them to defend themselves against the thousands of heavily armed criminals the ATF has knowingly armed, and supplied with all things necessary to continue on a senseless violent drug/gang war against the local populace in citys and most notably the southern border.

Where is that argument in congress? The ATF intentionally looked for “military style weapons and assault weapons” to supply to the drug cartel. HUGE quantities of ammo and Thousands of magazines. Now we are told to defend ourselves against that with only ten round magazines?

It’s baffling to the mind that a organization with this extensively bad track record still exists at all.

[Badger52]

Sounds like they used the same playbook the FBI used in Benghazi! Operation Slow and Stupid indeed.Upward mobility is tough if you're competing against the TSA.

[Streck-Fu]

Still going.....The tactics used in Milwuakee appear to be SOP.....LINK (http://www.jsonline.com/watchdog/watchdogreports/atf-uses-rogue-tactics-in-storefront-stings-across-the-nation-b99146765z1-234916641.html)

Agents with the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives employed rogue tactics similar to those used in Milwaukee in every operation, from Portland, Ore., to Pensacola, Fla.

Among the findings:

■ ATF agents befriended mentally disabled people to drum up business and later arrested them in at least four cities in addition to Milwaukee. In Wichita, Kan., ATF agents referred to a man with a low IQ as "slow-headed" before deciding to secretly use him as a key cog in their sting. And agents in Albuquerque, N.M., gave a brain-damaged drug addict with little knowledge of weapons a "tutorial" on machine guns, hoping he could find them one.

■ Agents in several cities opened undercover gun- and drug-buying operations in safe zones near churches and schools, allowed juveniles to come in and play video games and teens to smoke marijuana, and provided alcohol to underage youths. In Portland, attorneys for three teens who were charged said a female agent dressed provocatively, flirted with the boys and encouraged them to bring drugs and weapons to the store to sell.

■ As they did in Milwaukee, agents in other cities offered sky-high prices for guns, leading suspects to buy firearms at stores and turn around and sell them to undercover agents for a quick profit. In other stings, agents ran fake pawnshops and readily bought stolen items, such as electronics and bikes — no questions asked — spurring burglaries and theft. In Atlanta, agents bought guns that had been stolen just hours earlier, several ripped off from police cars.

■ Agents damaged buildings they rented for their operations, tearing out walls and rewiring electricity — then stuck landlords with the repair bills. A property owner in Portland said agents removed a parking lot spotlight,damaging her new $30,000 roof and causing leaks, before they shut down the operation and disappeared without a way for her to contact them.

■ Agents pressed suspects for specific firearms that could fetch tougher penalties in court. They allowed felons to walk out of the stores armed with guns. In Wichita, agents suggested a felon take a shotgun, saw it off and bring it back — and provided instructions on how to do it. The sawed-off gun allowed them to charge the man with a more serious crime.

■ In Pensacola, the ATF hired a felon to run its pawnshop. The move widened the pool of potential targets, boosting arrest numbers.Even those trying to sell guns legally could be charged if they knowingly sold to a felon. The ATF's pawnshop partner was later convicted of pointing a loaded gun at someone outside a bar. Instead of a stiff sentence typically handed down to repeat offenders in federal court, he got six months in jail — and a pat on the back from the prosecutor.

"To say this is just a few people, a few bad apples, I don't buy it," said David Harris, a professor at the University of Pittsburgh School of Law and an expert on law enforcement tactics and regulation. "If your agency is in good shape with policy, training, supervision and accountability, the bad apples will not be able to take things to this level."

The ATF refused the Journal Sentinel's request for an interview with Director B. Todd Jones or other agency officials to address findings of the investigation. Instead, the agency provided a written statement that failed to answer any questions, and spokeswoman Ginger Colbrun suggested reporters read ATF news releases issued after the stings.

[Badger52]

Among the findings:

■ ATF agents befriended mentally disabled people
The HQ staffettes drove over to the Capitol...?

[Toaster]

Among the findings:

■ ATF agents befriended mentally disabled people

The HQ staffettes drove over to the Capitol...?

No each other.

[Team Sergeant]

You've heard of "trickle down politics"?

This is "trickle down incompetence"........

[orion5]

You've heard of "trickle down politics"?

This is "trickle down incompetence"........

Speaking of trickling down...I'd love to have a 1-on-1 with whomever approved/managed these programs. Look him/her in the eyes and hear the words used to justify stringing up "mentally disabled" folks for their ops.

When you get to the point that more and more of your work decisions are immoral, for some overall purpose, and you're leading your people into these immoral decisions as well, it's time to hang up your superman cape and re-find your soul.

[Oldrotorhead]

You've heard of "trickle down politics"?

This is "trickle down incompetence"........

I guess you could call it trickle down if you call Niagara a small waterfall.:rolleyes: