Livermore Sees No Loss of Security After Arrests

Authorities said Tuesday that they had no indication that security at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory had been compromised by two American brothers who will be deported from the Philippines for alleged links to Islamic extremists.

Michael Ray Stubbs, who was arrested with his brother, James, outside Manila on Dec. 13, worked at the nuclear weapons design lab near San Francisco for almost a decade, officials said. A heating and air-conditioning mechanic, Michael Stubbs left Lawrence Livermore, which is managed by the University of California, in 2000.

The brothers are expected back in the U.S. in January.

In San Francisco, FBI spokeswoman LaRae Quy said agents had been investigating the possibility of a security breach at the laboratory since shortly after the two were arrested. Lab officials said Tuesday that there was no evidence of a breach.

“At this point, I don’t think we have made any determination” on whether Stubbs had compromised anything at the lab, Quy said.

“I am not going to categorize them as terrorists,” Quy said, adding that “if the U.S. government feels they are a credible threat, we will arrest them” in the U.S.

At a news conference in Manila, authorities brought in the brothers, handcuffed, and James Stubbs angrily denied the Philippine allegations.

Philippine officials allege that James Stubbs met with Abu Sayyaf extremists and the Muslim rebel Moro Islamic Liberation Front, both linked to Al Qaeda.

Associated Press contributed to this report