Navy Says Theft of Documents From Depot Won’t Hurt Security

Navy investigators remained baffled Thursday as to how intruders were able to enter the administration building at the Fallbrook Naval Weapons Station and steal a 1,200-pound safe containing secret documents. They said, however, that the theft will not jeopardize military security or operations.

Although the safe contained several classified documents and confidential memos, most of the material was en route to becoming “unclassified,” according to Cmdr. Doug Schamp, a spokesman for the San Diego Naval Base.

“As soon as we found out about the theft, we immediately did a threat analysis,” Schamp said. “Nothing significant has been stolen.

“Most of these classified documents were of a temporary nature,” Schamp said. “They had expiration dates that were coming up soon.”

One of the documents, for example, included suggestions for improving ship maintenance; others indicated ship movements, Schamp said.

According to authorities, the intruders entered the outer region of the 8,850-acre base Saturday night. The thieves apparently gained access to the administration building by forcing open a window. In addition to taking the safe, they rummaged through several desks and stole personal items, pocket change and a portable radio, Schamp said.

Investigators believe the perpetrators scavenged the building and found a set of keys to a Navy-owned pickup truck, which they also stole and used to haul away their bounty. A fence near the building was rammed open, apparently by the thieves as they left.

“Right now, we don’t know how entry was gained onto the base,” Schamp said. “But it’s not difficult to get on to the outer regions.

“First of all, the base is in an isolated area, and it’s so large you can come out of a ravine and walk right onto the base,” he said. Although the entire base is enclosed by an 8-foot-high, chain-link fence, no further protective measures are provided for the outer region, which is considered a “non-sensitive” area, Schamp said.

The administration buildings are not equipped with alarm systems, and security patrols check the area only periodically, he added.

But Schamp said it is considerably harder to enter the base’s core area, where weapons are stored. “It’s like peeling an onion: The farther you get to the middle, the tighter it gets.”

“The weapons area is completely enclosed,” he said. “There are electronic sensors and different types of alarms, plus random security patrols. If anything bigger than a rat moves around there, the whole place goes off.”

The break-in is being investigated by the military and the San Diego Sheriff’s Department, but few leads have been uncovered, said Schamp, adding: “We’re pretty much in the dark on this one.”