“The documents lost included a paper that was 'Secret — UK Eyes only'," Quin said. “It appears this was a mistake made by an individual.”
'UK Eyes Only' means that the document is only distributed in the United Kingdom and not shared with allies. It was unclear how and why such documents ended up at the bus stop or whether they were copies or originals.
The documents were found by a member of public who handed the papers to the BBC which published a news story. The BBC has handed the documents back to the ministry, Quin said.
Quin said Britain had informed the US of the situation and that the investigation would look at the security procedures around the printing of the classified documents.