NationStates Jolt Archive


Major Arms Seizure in Saharistan (OPEN ATTN: All UE customers)

Leafanistan
15-08-2007, 01:56
3:42 AM Local Time, Leafanistani Controlled Saharistan

The oil tanker GRCS Opportunity sailed into the darkened harbor. It was a supertanker owned by Kung Wah Shipping Corporation, one of many cover companies for the Leafanistani Red Mafia. Today its faux fuel tanks held only a few hundred barrels of oil, and below it, were everything the Mafia would need for another few months.

Thousands of tools and pieces of machinery, everything from illegal DVD decoders and copiers, to the machine tools to make NATO standard 155mm Howitzers. A whole platoon of Mafia Elite guards wore darkened clothing and carried the new M32 Caseless LMG with the grenade launchers.

Dozens of trucks with their headlights off waited near the dock to begin operations. Even the forklift operators were wearing Ski masks.

Then it came time to unload. They opened secret compartments on the side and the forklifts drove in to unload all their tools.

The guards stood guard, when whatever limited lights there were blinked off. Guards suddenly found themselves in intense pain and dropped to the floor unconscious, a victim of tasers.

They were dragged and sealed in drum cans with holes punched in them for air. Soon it would be just the workers there and no resistance.

They came from everywhere. They emerged from the water, firing FN 303 beanbags at the workers. They came leaping out of dumpsters and oil drums firing tasers sending people twitching to the ground. Some were painted the color of the roofing material for the warehouses and burst out and fired beanbags at anyone trying to escape.

The captain of the ship tried to do an emergency pull out and began to run to the steering house when the butt of a rifle knocked him out cold along with the rest of his crew.

Police cars with sirens blaring emerged from nowhere and sealed all the exits. Helicopters with FLIR shined spotlights and called for police officers to arrest anyone running away. Those who tried to swim found the waters surging with men.

A Seawolf class Submarine surfaced close to shore, the source of the special forces disgorging from the water.

When it was all over, the Leafanistani Government had made the largest bust in the history of them fighting the Red Mafia.

LNNN 22 'Breaking News Channel'

The reporter was on the scene as soon as the police scanner went silent on a Friday night. Something was horribly wrong, and the word on the street was the docks. She arrived just in time to see the hundreds of cars and jeeps swarm into the docks and arrest them.

She could see the helicopters and recognized them as part of the National Security Bureau, which meant National attention, which means great ratings.

The camera was on her and showing the live footage and an oppurtunistic police chief was setting up an interview.

"This is Liane Forge with WCTR...I mean LNNN 22 News. We are on the scene of a massive bust by police of what looks like a massive ship. Excuse me sir! This is Liane Forget, LNNN 22 what is going on?"

"Well Miss, the local police, us, have been working with the National Security Bureau to root out these Mafia thugs and stop their illegal weapons manufacturing factories here in Saharistan."

"How is it going?"

"The raid has gone perfectly and from the looks of it, it seems to be their replacement machine tooling for possibly an entire year."

"What does that mean Officer?"

"Well, machine tools and bits and junk break down from working with churning metal, and need to be replaced every so often. And you can't just cast any old piece of steel into a bit, it has to be a high quality thing. We've been tracking a 'ghost-shift' factory near the General Resources Independently Managed Zone, a GRIM Zone, where corrupt local managers would hire migrant workers to work on factories after they 'close' to produce copies of the machine tools they use to make legally, and taxed items, using leftover scrap metal they have melted down. We were able to track an entire years worth of ghost parts to a loading dock in Algeristan, where we found out the ship was going to dock here to unload the parts and they would disappear into many factories here on the waterfront. With luck, we've destroyed the Mafia's capability of building illegal weapons."

It would be reported as the first great success about the war against corruption in the Colonies.

When all was said and done, over a million unstamped and unregistered goods were cateloged and submitted as evidence against the men.

Most of them were given 10 years for Tax Evasion, the only crime committed that day, thanks to the limited jurisdiction of the NSB.

Xilanhot Mountain, Former Socialist Bunker

And when the Shadow Council of the Mafia heard this, their leader shouted in anger for the first time in a long time, and pulled out his personal KF15 Fulcrum and fired like mad at the 30" Plasma that showed him the bad news.

He knew this was bad, not only for their armies, but for the fact that those machine tools were for their heavy manufacturing unit, which means all those fancy tanks, guns, ships and planes were suddenly without parts to build it.

And he didn't exactly have access to osmium mines to make his own parts.

Universal Exports was going to have to reorganize and find 'independent' weapons producers.
Vandaheim
15-08-2007, 15:34
3:42 AM Local Time, Leafanistani Controlled Saharistan


LNNN 22 'Breaking News Channel'

"This is Liane Forge with WCTR...I mean LNNN 22 News. We are on the scene of a massive bust by police of what looks like a massive ship. Excuse me sir! This is Liane Forget, LNNN 22 what is going on?"

"Well Miss, the local police, us, have been working with the National Security Bureau to root out these Mafia thugs and stop their illegal weapons manufacturing factories here in Saharistan."

"How is it going?"

"The raid has gone perfectly and from the looks of it, it seems to be their replacement machine tooling for possibly an entire year."

"What does that mean Officer?"

"Well, machine tools and bits and junk break down from working with churning metal, and need to be replaced every so often. And you can't just cast any old piece of steel into a bit, it has to be a high quality thing. We've been tracking a 'ghost-shift' factory near the General Resources Independently Managed Zone, a GRIM Zone, where corrupt local managers would hire migrant workers to work on factories after they 'close' to produce copies of the machine tools they use to make legally, and taxed items, using leftover scrap metal they have melted down. We were able to track an entire years worth of ghost parts to a loading dock in Algeristan, where we found out the ship was going to dock here to unload the parts and they would disappear into many factories here on the waterfront. With luck, we've destroyed the Mafia's capability of building illegal weapons."

Cal Penderson quietly set down his tumbler of scotch and reflected on the news item. Vandaheim had been dealing on both sides of the Leafastani arms market, buying from either as needs or price dictated. UE was the major supplier of Vandaheim's Crusader Battlesuits, which equipped the bulk of their medium motorized forces, capable units procured at an incredible price (even with a tidy profit for himself). Also, General Kort was raving about the Dragonskin units that had been procured for the light infantry. The navy was pleased with the Amur SSK's that had been delivered, source undisclosed. What was bad for UE was bad for Vandaheim, but what was even worse would be any exposure of the backdealing to the government of Leafastani.

Cal pressed a button on his desk.

"Yes?", the answer came almost immediately, despite the lateness in the day, Cal wondered if the man ever slept.

"There is a situation developing in Saharistan, which could be potentially damaging to Vandaheim's foreign relations, I want you to investigate and see how exposed we are and what we can to limit our liability."

"As you wish"

OOC: ouch, a simple bid for new sources gives rise to added complications