Two Israelis Arrested in east Tennessee Transporting Suspicious Materials

Various local news broadcasts ^ | May 9, 2004 | who knows what evil?

[who knows what evil?]

My apologies in advance on this story; I just happened to catch this on several different newscasts a few minutes ago, and I am going by memory as best I can. Unicoi County (Tennessee) sheriffs arrested two Israeli men after a high-speed chase down mountain roads in this east Tennessee locale. While the sheriff was in pursuit, local witnesses noticed that materials were being thrown from the truck as it sped by, well over the posted speed limits. These witnesses were able to locate some of these items; one of which included a jug whose contents became "unusually hot" after the ingredients inside were shaken together. (Goes into the "Hey, y'all...watch this" category, WKWE.) Upon arrest, the police noted that the cab of the truck contained a "Learn How to Fly" brochure, along with passports and Florida licenses that "just didn't seem to add up". The Israelis claimed they were "just in the process of moving some furniture up to Boston". The police also stated that these two Israelis are "not being cooperative in any way." The FBI is investigating the nature of the substance in the jug that was recovered, which has been classified as an "inflammable fuel."

My questions:

1. What ELSE was in this (big yellow) 25-foot Ryder truck?
2. If they were travelling from Florida to Boston, what were they doing on a two-lane back road in the mountains of east Tennessee, several hundred miles WEST of Interstate 95; the most direct route from Florida to Boston?
3. What is the volatile substance in the jug, and why did they wish to avoid getting caught with it? (Why else would they pitch it?)
4. Why are they interested in "Learning How to Fly?"
5. Were they REALLY going to Boston, or were they MORE interested in the nearby Nuclear Fuel Services plant, or, G-d forbid, the huge Eastman Chemical Plant, about thirty miles further up the road?

It will be interesting to see if the national media picks up on this.

[who knows what evil?]

Has anyone else heard anything about this?

[knud99]

I'm certainly curious! Israelis?!

Bump...

[familyop]

It does not surprise me at all that Tennessee police called them "Israelis" to the media. When's their next KKK meeting, BTW? Or do they have to return to their group home after work? ...idiots. People won't know who they're really talking about unless they say, even in Tennessean, "Ayrabs."

[randog]

Israelis?!

No, "Israelis".

[Sacajaweau]

They should have just put a tail on them so they'd lead them to the hideout.

[Husker24]

Wasnt there a story about a year ago that some Isrealis were caught in New York for something, and they used the same excuse, "were moving furnature"...Remember there are plenty of Arab Isrealis.

[Shermy]

East Tenn mountains...

"one of which included a jug whose contents became "unusually hot" after the ingredients inside were shaken together. ..."

Moonshine?

[LayoutGuru2]

Hmmm... BTTT...

[the_Watchman]

Possibly most important: Were they Israeli Arabs or Israeli Jews?

"Israeli" could refer to a German Buddhist traveling under a passport from Israel.

[rang1995]

if true this will get the whole "israel did 9/11" thing going again..of course in Tenn they maybe don't know the difference between israeli jews and arabs..very interesting to be sure one way or another

[Southack]

Please remember that "Palestinians" have no legal state...so they have to travel on Israeli, Jordanian, Syrian, or Lebanese passports.

[Planet]

Anything is possible, but I'll bet you lunch that these guys turn out NOT to be Israelis.

[leadpenny]

That's what I'm thinkin'. Tennessee Tea.

[McGruff]

Two men arrested after high-speed chase in Tennessee

Associated Press


ERWIN, Tenn. - Two Israeli men who led the Unicoi County sheriff on a high-speed chase in a rented moving truck were placed under arrest and are being investigated by the FBI, local officials said.

Shmuel Dahan and Almaliach Naor, both from Israel, were being held without bond Sunday afternoon at the Unicoi County Jail. The truck, rented from a Ryder office in Mars Hills, N.C., was being held in the county garage pending an FBI investigation, officials said.

Dahan is charged with reckless driving, littering, false identification and evading arrest, while Naor faces charges of false identification and evading arrest, an officer with the Unicoi County Sheriff's Department who would not give his name said Sunday.

An investigation by the FBI is ongoing and more charges are possible, he said. A woman who answered the phone at the FBI's Knoxville office said there was no one available to answer questions about the arrest.

The incident began late Saturday afternoon when Sheriff Kent Harris noticed a rental truck traveling at a high speed along former U.S. Highway 23, a lightly-traveled highway near the North Carolina state line.

"I was really concerned because the driver would not stop after I flashed my headlights for nearly three miles," Harris said. "He was weaving back and forth and I was wondering what a large (rental truck) was doing on the two-lane highway late Saturday afternoon instead of the faster I-26 Interstate."

Harris said he saw the men throw something from the truck while they were being pursued. Officers scouring the area later found a vial containing an unknown substance along the roadway, he said.

Once the men were apprehended, officers also found a "Learn to Fly" brochure in the truck, leading Harris and others to express concern about security at the Nuclear Fuel Services plant in Erwin.

"I got a sick feeling when I saw it," Harris said.

Dahan also gave authorities a fake Florida driver's license issues in Plantation, Fla., he said, while Naor produced a fake identification card.

Harris subsequently contacted the FBI, the federal Bureau of Tobacco and Firearms and other local authorities to look into the situation.

"We're not overreacting," Harris said. "We have a responsibility to protect the citizens of Unicoi County and that's what I'm going to do at any cost. I'd rather overreact, if that's what you call it, than be sorry later."

original article

http://www.charlotte.com/mld/observer/news/local/8627949.htm?1c

[LayoutGuru2]

Mohamed and Abdul are now a bit ticked off about those discount, stealth passports they picked up from Wal-mart.

[Cagey]

Moonshine?

[Alouette]

Any web links for these local news stations?

[per loin]

Musta been a tough "jug" that could be hurled from a speeding truck without breaking.

[Joe Hadenuf]

Shmuel Dahan and Almaliach Naor, both from Israel, were being held without bond Sunday afternoon at the Unicoi County Jail. The truck, rented from a Ryder office in Mars Hills, N.C., was being held in the county garage pending an FBI investigation, officials said.

Interesting....

[FourtySeven]

Interesting.