NATION : 2 Air Force Policemen Arrested in Theft of Jet Engines at Utah Base

Two Air Force security policemen at Hill Air Force Base were arrested in the theft of three F-16 jet fighter engines, the FBI said today.

Indictments have also been returned against 12 others, but the documents remained sealed in U.S. District Court and the FBI refused to identify them.

The arrests and indictment came after a two-year undercover investigation into thefts of military hardware.

U.S. Atty. Dee Benson identified the men arrested at a restaurant Monday night as Airman 1st Class Brian Roth of Ohio and Senior Airman Danny Joe Stroud of Kansas. No hometowns or ages were immediately available. Benson said he expected “many more” arrests in coming weeks.

The FBI established a storefront operation in Roy, near the northern Utah base, called Military Surplus Brokers, which bought thousands of items stolen from all branches of the military, said Robert Bryant, special agent in charge of the bureau’s Utah office.

He said the purchases resulted in “the identification of more than 100 suspects throughout the United States who are involved in the theft and sale of stolen government property.”