Thans to the Sydney Morning Herald for this article.

TNT-detecting dogs to be used in fight against terrorist jailbreaks
November 18, 2007

FOUR highly trained bomb detector dogs will be deployed in NSW jails for the first time to combat potential risks from terrorists and extremists.

The four labradors can detect explosives including PETN, RDX, Chlorox, nitrate and TNT.

They are likely to be involved in US Government trials on the relatively new and unstable explosive TATP or Triacetone Triperoxide, which is more powerful than nitroglycerine.

Dogs will be used in the clearance and perimeter security of jails and secure the courts for the upcoming trial of nine men caught in Australia’s biggest anti-terrorism sweep.

The trial, due to start on February 25 and expected to take up to two years, will be conducted in a specially fitted-out court in Parramatta.

Jail authorities worldwide are concerned about terrorist groups and organised crime gangs whose members do not hesitate to use “weapons of war” to attack correctional facilities.

NSW Justice Minister John Hatzistergos said: “These bomb detector dogs will be employed to find improvised explosive devices [IEDs] that could be planted to kill uniformed officers or facilitate an escape. They have undergone three years of advanced training to combat the evolving terrorist threat from different types of IEDs.”

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