Original post: August 5, 2007
Two men are being detained in Goose Creek, S.C. for being in possession of explosive devices. Goose Creek, S.C., according to U.S. Today is the home of the Naval Weapons Station which houses a military brig where enemy combatants have been held.GOOSE CREEK, S.C. (AP) — Two men were detained after police found a suspicious item in their car during a routine traffic stop for speeding near Charleston, authorities said Sunday.
Berkeley County sheriff's Lt. Vince Lombard said the men were being held pending a charge of unlawful possession of an explosive device.
Lombard would not say what the device was or what it was that bomb technicians from neighboring Charleston County exploded at about 2:45 a.m. Sunday.
(A bomb squad technician examines items removed from a four door sedan on Highway 176 in Goose Creek early Sunday morning. The FBI is on the scene investigating the suspicious car that was stopped by police Saturday night. A robot, center, removed several items including a backpack, a large gas can, and a red box from the car. The technician crawled on his stomach for a cautious up-close look at several items.)
Jules Crittenden points out two of those enemy combatants that have, in the past, been held at the Naval Weapons Station Military Brig are Jose Padilla and Yaser Hamdi.
WLTX tells us that the two men being detained are of middle eastern decent.Goose Creek - Police have detained two men after finding and detonating a suspicious item found in their car during a routine stop for a speeding violation on a highway near Charleston.
Sources say a four-door sedan was stopped during a routine traffic stop Saturday only to find what was believed to be a bomb inside the vehicle.
The two people in the car were said to be of Middle Eastern decent.
All these news accounts say these two men were detained after a "routine traffic stop", but, according to Lt. Vince Lombardo, it was a traffic stop AND that information obtained from and investigation in another jurisdiction raised suspicions of the deputies.According to Lt. Vince Lombardo, deputies discovered the suspicious items in the trunk during a traffic stop. Deputies stopped two men in a four-door sedan for speeding. The car had Florida tags. The two men inside the vehicle are detained at the scene. Lombardo also said information from an investigation in another jurisdiction raised the suspicions of the deputies.
What are we missing here? Either it was a routine traffic stop because they were speeding, or the police were alerted TO BE LOOKING for something suspicious there because of previous information, or a tip.
Is it a coincidence that these men were detained with explosive devices, so close the the Naval Weapons Stations? -- Could very well be.
Was it a coincidence that al-Qaeda tapes have been warning us of a "summer surprise"?-- Again, could very well be.
Was it a coincidence that a newly released video has come out with "dire warnings?--- Could be.
None of us can answer that with any confidence right now, but it serves to remind us that our authorities as well as our citizens must be vigilant and alert and keep our eyes open.
As more details are reported regarding this, I will update this post or link to a new one.
You can check out the buzzzz in the blogosphere for yourself as the day goes on.
Now for the update on this story:
From Charlotte Observer:
In a 12-minute video posted on YouTube, an Egyptian man wearing a white shirt, khaki pants and rubber gloves explains in Arabic how to turn a toy boat into a bomb.His name is Ahmed Abdellatif Sherif Mohamed, and last month he was arrested in Goose Creek after authorities found four PVC pipes containing a mixture of potassium nitrate, kitty litter and sugar in his car’s trunk.
Mohamed told FBI agents he made the video to teach “those persons in Arabic countries to defend themselves against the infidels invading their countries,” according to federal court documents released late Tuesday.
Specifically, he told the FBI “the technology which he demonstrated in the tape was to be used against those who fought for the United States.”
What started as a traffic stop for speeding in South Carolina has led to a two-count federal indictment on terrorism-related charges and a multistate mystery investigators still are working to unravel.
Remember when this first came out, defenders kept insisting these two simply had some innocent fireworks?
Innocent my rear.
