Beware al-Qaida, Branch is on to you By Trace Christenson The Enquirer
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- COLDWATER -- Tongue-in-cheek terrorism has snuck into an official dispatch by the Branch County sheriff's department. In an attempt to warn county residents about fraudulent telemarketers, the department has spread a spoof from The Onion, a satirical weekly newspaper published in New York City.
In a four-paragraph release sent to area news organizations Tuesday, the sheriff department reported the investigation of several complaints of possible telemarketing fraud in the area, especially targeted at the elderly.
"In the course of this investigation, it was learned that this is going on throughout the United States and some of these telemarketing programs are believed to be operated by Al-Qaeda. The CIA has announced that they acquired a videotape showing Al-Qaeda members making phone solicitations for vacation home rentals, long distance telephone service, magazine subscriptions and other products."
The reports seem to be taken from a Sept. 18 edition of The Onion headlined "Report: Al-Qaeda Allegedly Engaging in Telemarketing." http://www.battlecreekenquirer.com/news/stories/20020926/localnews/160109.html --- Sent from UnionMail Service [http://mail.union.org.za]