Report: Newark Airport lax on security

NEWARK, N.J., March 23 (UPI) -- Security officials at New Jersey's Newark Airport routinely fail to appropriately check airport employees entering secure facilities, it was reported Sunday.

The (New Jersey) Star-Ledger said repeated checks of a Terminal C employee access point showed airport employees were rarely searched when entering security-restricted areas.

While passengers at the airport typically must pass through metal detectors and have their belongings X-rayed, the airport does not have such security precautions in place for its employees.

The newspaper said the apparent lapse in airport security comes as concern is rising regarding an airport employee taking part in a terrorist plot or other illicit activities.

Such concerns were fueled by last week's arrest of several Newark Airport baggage handlers who had been recruited to steal government checks as they were being transported through the airport.

U.S. Transportation Security Administration officials have labeled Newark Liberty International Airport as safe from any potential sabotage by airport employees.