THE Federal Bureau of Investigation has sought the assistance of CNMI dive shop operators to thwart possible terrorist threats from underwater divers, the Variety learned yesterday.
This is part of FBI’s nationwide alert issued on May 23 to state and local enforcement agencies, but the federal agency emphasizes that the alert carries no specific information.
Guam dive operators’ assistance has also been recently sought by FBI.
Mitsuru Fukushima, president of the 18-member Northern Marianas Dive Operators Association, said the group immediately held a directors’ meeting in end-May to help gather information that FBI requested.
FBI agents visited a few dive shops and asked managers and instructors about suspicious activities or people.
Among the data that NMDOA furnished FBI are the names of dive shop owners and managers and the list of students who participated in diving courses from 1999 to present.
The list included the names of the dive students, course classification (e.g. open water, advance), their date of births, their affiliations and instructors.
Fukushima, who is also the president of Blue Horizon, said NMDOA is cooperating with FBI to address security concerns.
“NMDOA has also always tried its best to protect the environment and safety of people,” he told Variety.
There are about 150 licensed dive instructors on Saipan, including Japanese, Koreans and Americans.
