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Feds Say N.J. Terror Attack Was at Hand
Christie would not comment on the identities of the four other men in the video or say whether they were considered suspects. But he said the investigation was still going on.
U.S. Rep. Chris Smith, whose district includes Fort Dix, said he has long been concerned about who has access to the sprawling 31,000-acre Army installation located in the Pinelands region of New Jersey, about 20 miles east of Philadelphia.
![]() U.S. Attorney Christopher Christie, center, surrounded by federal and state police officials, holds a news conference on the steps of the U.S. District Courthouse in Camden, N.J., Tuesday, May 8, 2007, to announce the arrests of six foreign-born Muslims who are accused of plotting to attack the Army's Fort Dix and massacre scores of U.S. soldiers. (AP Photo/Mike Derer) (Mike Derer - AP)
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"This whole affair just underscores the vulnerability," Smith said. "You don't know who's on your base. What the pizza delivery man tells me is that when you have access, when you have frequent access, you get the lay of the land, so that if you do a terror attack it will cause that much more damage and loss of life."
The fort considers its policy for screening delivery people adequate for now, but said it could be reviewed in the future, base spokeswoman Carolee Nesbit said.
Before they are cleared to make deliveries at Fort Dix, drivers must register in advance, undergo a criminal background check, and obtain an access pass that has to be reviewed every 30 days.
Drivers who arrive at the military installation's gate are greeted by armed guards, who check their identification and issue a pass. The delivery people are not followed or monitored once they clear security, Nesbit said.
"There are 16,000 people that come through the gates every day," she said. "It's practically impossible to follow everyone."
Nisbet said security is present wherever military personnel are gathered at the fort, even if it is not visible from the road. In addition to the weapons each individual soldier may carry, she said, "There is security on these ranges."
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Associated Press writer Wayne Parry in Fort Dix contributed to this report.


