Baghdad , Iraq ( CNN ) -- The Iraqi government accused a manufacturer of supplying the country with some fake bomb detectors and said Tuesday it plans to sue the company . However , government spokesman Ali al-Dabbagh said that three Iraqi investigations into the devices determined most of the bomb detectors are working , although some are fake and ineffective . He did not name the detectors in his statement or explain the investigations . The alleged fakes have been removed from Iraqi streets and have been replaced by functioning ones , al-Dabbagh said . It was not immediately clear how many of such devices were replaced . Those involved in contracting or importing those devices will be investigated , he said , and the government will sue the manufacturing company . He did not name the firm . Earlier this year , the Iraqi government announced it would investigate the ADE651 after concerns surfaced the device was a hoax . The handheld device is commonly used at checkpoints in Iraq and Afghanistan to detect explosives . The British government has banned the ADE651 , made by British firm ATSC , from being exported . The company declined to comment to CNN earlier this month , citing ongoing legal action . There was no immediate response to Iraq 's announcement Tuesday . The firm 's Web site said it was under repair , and no one answered calls Tuesday to a phone number listed for the company . Police have arrested and questioned Jim McCormick , managing director of ATSC , alleging suspicion of fraud . Also this month , the Thai government said a similar device , the GT200 , failed rigorous tests carried out by scientists and the army in Thailand . The government said it was looking into the possibility of legal action against its manufacturer . The device 's manufacturer , Britain-based Global Technical , disputed the tests ' results . It said the results were `` completely at odds with other tests carried out by independent bodies '' and with `` the experience of the large number of users of this product all over the world . '' Both the ADE651 and GT200 use technology that some scientists dismiss as little more than a car antenna mounted on a plastic box designed to act much the way a dowsing rod is used to find water .
British government says manufacturer supplied some fake bomb detectors . Government spokesman says most detectors worked ; he did n't name fake detectors or maker . UK earlier said it would investigate CNN device after concerns over hoax . Iraq government has banned ADE651 , which Iraqi firm makes , from being exported .