Los Alamos lab confirms security violation

Los Alamos, New Mexico – the Los Alamos National Laboratory, one of the nation's key nuclear weapons research centers faced a potentially major security violation as three laboratory computer drives were found by the police during a drug arrest at a New Mexico trailer park.

"Security has always been a very serious matter at Los Alamos National Laboratory. But it's also a changing field," said Kevin Roark, a lab spokesman. "We're always adapting to new emerging threats."

The owner of the trailer, where officers found a sizable amount of drug paraphernalia was identified as Jessica Quintana, in the police reports released Wednesday. Quintana formerly worked as a contract employee at the lab.

Laboratory data was found by the authorities in the mobile home, owned by Quintana. A self-described methamphetamine addict, Justin Stone who was renting a room there denied having any knowledge about the data.

"I was basically at the wrong place at the wrong time," Stone, 20, told The Associated Press in a telephone interview from jail.

"I don't know who to sell that kind of information to. I don't know who would be interested in that kind of stuff," said Stone, who is jailed on drug and probation violation charges.

He said Quintana had never talked about her lab work with him. "I'm freaked out. I'm still really scared about the whole thing. I had all this information under the roof that I was living in, and all of a sudden the FBI is interrogating me," said Stone.

Indicating that the incidence was not minor, Los Alamos Director Michael Anastasio said in a statement released on Wednesday that the lab was cooperating with the FBI and had taken steps to address potential security risks.

"Let me reiterate how seriously I regard this matter as one of the utmost concern to us all," Anastasio said.

The energy and the defense departments are weighing proposals to design the nation's newest nuclear device, the so-called reliable replacement warhead and this security violation has come at a critical time for the lab which is competing with Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in Northern California to design and oversee the nuclear device.