TBILISI -- Two men in Georgia have been arrested for allegedly attempting to sell uranium, a potential ingredient in a radioactive "dirty bomb."
State Security Service investigator Savle Motiashvili told reporters in Tbilisi on March 13 that the suspects had been arrested in the southwestern city of Kobuleti.
Kobuleti
According to Motiashvili, the suspects had just over 40 grams of radioactive uranium 238 and planned to sell it for $2.8 million to an unspecified buyer.
Law enforcement and nuclear experts say there is concern that uranium 238 could be used as a main ingredient in a "dirty bomb" that could spread cancer-causing radioactive material over a wide area.
Under Georgian law, the illegal possession or sale of radioactive material is punishable by up to 10 years in prison.