WASHINGTON (AP) — The head of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration says the agency never installed surveillance cameras to photograph vehicle license plates near gun shows. The idea was proposed in an internal DEA email as part of an effort to investigate gun-trafficking crimes.

DEA Administrator Michelle Leonhart told The Associated Press in a statement Wednesday that the plan was only a suggestion, never authorized by her agency and never put into action. The AP also learned the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives didn't authorize or approve the license plate surveillance plan.

The Wall Street Journal reported the DEA's aborted plan in Wednesday's editions. Automated license plate scanners take pictures of every passing car and record the information in a database that can be used to track a vehicle's movements.