Those Mexican thieves that stole a truckload of cobalt-60? They’re virtually sure to die, according to experts.
According to The Washington Post, the cobalt-60 that they stole was found abandoned, removed from its protective casing, about 40km from where it was stolen. Mardonio Jimenez of Mexico’s nuclear safety commission explained to the Post what that meant for the thieves:
“The people who handled it will have severe problems with radiation. They will, without a doubt, die.”
It seems most likely now that the thieves didn’t know what was inside the truck, or within the casing that they opened. Sadly for them, radiation poisoning is not a pleasant way to check out either. [Washington Post via The Verge]
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