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AP INVESTIGATION: Nuclear smugglers sought terrorist buyers

In this May 27, 2015 photo, former Moldovan police investigator Constantin Malic pauses during an interview in Chisinau, Moldova. In 2009, Malic was a 27-year-old police officer when he first stumbled upon the nuclear black market. He was working on a fraud unit in the Moldovan capital, and had an informant helping police take down a euro counterfeiting ring stretching from the Black Sea to Naples, Italy. The informant, a businessman in his fifties, casually mentioned to Malic that over the years, contacts had periodically offered him radioactive material. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
In this May 27, 2015 photo, former Moldovan police investigator Constantin Malic pauses during an interview in Chisinau, Moldova. In 2009, Malic was a 27-year-old police officer when he first stumbled upon the nuclear black market. He was working on a fraud unit in the Moldovan capital, and had an informant helping police take down a euro counterfeiting ring stretching from the Black Sea to Naples, Italy. The informant, a businessman in his fifties, casually mentioned to Malic that over the years, contacts had periodically offered him radioactive material. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda) In this May 27, 2015 photo, former Moldovan police investigator Constantin Malic pauses during an interview in Chisinau, Moldova. In 2009, Malic was a 27-year-old police officer when he first stumbled upon the nuclear black market. He was working on a fraud unit in the Moldovan capital, and had an informant helping police take down a euro counterfeiting ring stretching from the Black Sea to Naples, Italy. The informant, a businessman in his fifties, casually mentioned to Malic that over the years, contacts had periodically offered him radioactive material. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)

By Associated Press 1 min read

CHISINAU, Moldova (AP) – The Associated Press has learned that gangs with Russian ties are driving a thriving black market in nuclear materials in eastern Europe, often with the explicit intent of connecting sellers to Middle Eastern extremist groups.

Authorities working with the FBI have interrupted four attempts by gangs shopping radioactive material in Moldova, a small country in Eastern Europe. The latest known case came in February, when a smuggler offered radioactive cesium, specifically seeking an Islamic State buyer.

The most serious case came in 2011, when a man expressing hatred for the U.S. tried to sell bomb-grade uranium to a Sudanese buyer.

Successful busts were compromised by striking shortcomings: Key suspects got away; prison sentences were surprisingly short; and gang leaders may have escaped with the bulk of their nuclear contraband.