Police Lose Wembley Stadium Keys; Olympic Security Staff Forced To Change Locks

n investigation is currently under way into how police at Wembley Stadium in London lost a set of keys, forcing security chiefs at the venue to change locks.

According to the AFP, officers searching Wembley — England’s national stadium and one of six arenas hosting the men’s and women’s soccer tournaments during the 2012 Olympics — ahead of the start of the games misplaced the keys, prompting an investigation by Scotland Yard, but organizers insisted that security has not been compromised.

“There is absolutely no security concern in relation to the stadium, as measures were taken immediately to secure all key areas of the venue,” the Metropolitan Police said in a statement, adding that the keys were for internal doors and the relevant locks have since been changed.

CNN reports that cost of replacing all the high-tech laser keys used at Wembley is expected to run into tens of thousands of dollars.

MSNBC points out that the recent missing keys incident at Wembley Stadium is the latest embarrassing mishap to plague the soccer venue.

Just days before the games opened on Friday, Britain’s government was forced to deploy thousands more servicemen to protect Olympic venues after private security contractor G4S admitted it could not hire enough security guards for the event.

The Daily Mail writes that British Prime Minister David Cameron ordered the deployment of approximately 1,200 troops — in addition to the 17,000 already on call — to guarantee security at the 2012 Games.

Following that ordeal, G4S CEO Nick Buckles, apologized and said the fiasco was inexcusable mistake.

via CNN