Pubdate: Mon, 05 Mar 2012
Source: Tampa Bay Times (FL)
Contact: http://www.sptimes.com/letters/
Copyright: 2012 St. Petersburg Times
Website: http://www.tampabay.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/419
Note: Named the St. Petersburg Times from 1884=962011.
Author: Mike Wightman

DANGEROUS RUSE

The story of a Pinellas County sheriff's
detective posing as a Progress Energy worker
reminded me of a similar situation we had in
Northern California when I worked for a utility company in the 1980s.

The growing of marijuana in densely wooded rural
areas was common. Federal agents would dress as
utility line workers posing to work on the
high-tension lines but were actually conducting
surveillance operations. This became known to the
growers and they began shooting at utility line workers.

The practice of posing as agents was stopped, and
an extensive outreach campaign was mounted in the
rural communities, assuring people that agents
would no longer pose as utility workers and
pleading with them not to shoot at unarmed utility employees.

Mike Wightman, Safety Harbor
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom