Police on lookout for suspicious men at Barrett Firearms plant
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. Police are on the lookout for a man described as being of Middle Eastern descent who tried to gain access to a firearms plant in Murfreesboro.
Rutherford County sheriff's deputies were called to the Barrett Firearms Manufacturing plant yesterday. A plant employee reported on Wednesday that a Middle Eastern-looking man had tried get inside the building
Barrett Firearms makes 50-caliber rifles for the military, which has used them in combat since the 1991 Gulf war. The powerful gun is also sold to the general public.
Critics have warned that the rifle could be used by terrorists to bring down commercial airliners or penetrate rail cars and storage plants holding hazardous materials.
The plant worker said the man had asked questions about the plant and began demanding access when the employee did not respond.
The man was asked to leave after he became upset when the employee began to examine his pickup truck.
The sheriff's office was working with officials at Barrett Firearms and the U-S Department of Homeland Security to pursue any leads.
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Gun manufacturer reports suspicious people try to enter building
A statewide alert was issued Thursday for subjects who asked questions of Barrett Firearms Manufacturing employees and tried to enter the facility, according to the Rutherford County Sheriff’s Department.
According to a release issued today, the subjects trying to enter the facility were described as being of Middle Eastern descent.
The sheriff’s department is working with the manufacturer and the Department of Homeland Security concerning the situation. Extra patrol of the facility is underway.
Deputies were called to the plant, which manufactures the military’s M107 .50-caliber sniper system, Thursday morning to gather information about the Wednesday afternoon incident.
A plant employee was leaving the building about 4 p.m. when he encountered a man who appeared to be Middle Eastern who’d arrived in a white dually pickup truck towing a white utility trailer.
The subject asked questions about what was manufactured there, and when refused information by the BFMI employee began demanding entry to the building.
When the BFMI employee began studying the man’s truck, the subject became upset and was told to leave the area. There were two other male subjects in the dually and they had luggage in the bed of the truck.
Anyone who may have information about these men is asked to call the Sheriff’s Office at 898-7770
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