FBI PROBES LAPTOP DATA.Byline: DANA BARTHOLOMEW Staff Writer VALLEY VILLAGE -- The FBI has launched a criminal investigation into a Boeing Co. scientist over the handling of top-secret data, authorities said Thursday. Abraham Lesnik, listed as an employee at Boeing's Space Based Radar group in El Segundo, has been the subject of three searches of his Valley Village home, the FBI confirmed. The investigation stems from classified information found on a laptop computer Keyboard Keyboard layout is often sacrificed. The Home, End, PageUp and PageDn keys may not be dedicated, requiring that you hold down the Fn key at the same time. This can be very cumbersome if you use these keys a lot. Function keys and cursor keys are often made smaller, and one keyboard feels better than another. There are only two rules. Rule 1: spend some time typing on the keyboard. Rule 2: spend some time typing on the keyboard. used by Lesnik that was confiscated by Boeing, then turned over to the FBI, according to sources and news reports. Lesnik, an expert in high-energy physics, developed anti-missile systems for Boeing and has a high-level security clearance, according to court papers obtained by ABC News and KFI-AM (640). His attorney said Lesnik -- who has not been arrested or charged -- has done nothing wrong. ``Mr. Lesnik has never improperly transmitted any classified information to anybody,'' attorney Marc Harris said. Spokesmen for the Federal Bureau of Investigation Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), division of the U.S. Dept. of Justice charged with investigating all violations of federal laws except those assigned to some other federal agency. The FBI has jurisdiction over some 185 investigative matters, among them espionage, sabotage, and other subversive activities; kidnapping; extortion; bank robbery; interstate transportation of stolen property; civil-rights matters; interstate gambling violations; and fraud and the Boeing Co. declined to discuss the case. Affidavits filed with the court have been sealed. ``Boeing is cooperating with the U.S. government investigation in this case and as such, we cannot comment further,'' said Boeing spokesman Walt Rice. Investigators told ABC News that Lesnik's laptop was turned over to the FBI amid questions about whether classified data had ``ended up in the hands of unauthorized individuals, including foreigners.'' The investigation began when Boeing security officers confiscated Lesnik's company-furnished laptop earlier this year, citing potential misuse of the equipment, said court documents filed by Lesnik in a suit seeking return of the computer. A source told the Daily News that a supervisor had caught Lesnik surfing the Internet during a business meeting, then confiscated the computer, which contained classified information. The scientist sued, demanding Boeing return the laptop because it contained personal information about him and his family. A judge sided with Boeing, which then turned the laptop over to the FBI. Lesnik, contacted Thursday at his Hesby Street home, declined to comment. dana.bartholomew(at)dailynews.com (818) 713-3730 |
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