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| MICHELLE MOWAD, Special to The Mercury | October 17, 2001 |
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Posted on 10/17/2001 2:06:03 PM PDT by testforecho
| 2 found with video of Sears Tower |
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| PLYMOUTH -- Two men whom police described as Middle Eastern were detained in the township by federal immigration authorities after being found with detailed video footage of the Sears Tower in Chicago. |
| Plymouth Police encountered the men after an officer responded to Pizzeria Uno on the 1000 block of West Ridge Pike at 2:40 p.m. Thursday for a report of illegal dumping, according to reports. A manager there advised the police officer that a tractor-trailer was observed backed up to the Dumpster at the rear of the restaurant. The manager noticed a freshly dumped pile of furniture adjacent to the Dumpster, according to police. The manager confronted the vehicle's operator, a Middle Eastern man, police said. The man, who later identified himself as Moshe Elmakias, 30, denied that he did anything and fled the scene, heading west on West Ridge Pike, according to police. The manager was able to provide township police with the Florida registration number of the tractor-trailer and said that a sign posted on the side of the vehicle read "Moving Systems Incorporated" and included a phone number, police said. The area was searched by township police, and the vehicle was spotted parked on the curb in front of John Kennedy Ford on Ridge Pike, just west of Industrial Way. An officer proceeded to make contact with the occupants of the truck by knocking on the cab, according to reports. A Middle Eastern man, later identified as Ron Katar, 23, exited the sleeper area of the cab and said that the operator was across the street as he pointed toward the Don Rosen Porsche dealer, reports said. Elmakias and a white female, Ayelet Reisler, 23, were approaching the vehicle from the dealership, but the female then began walking in a different direction, acting as if she were not with Elmakias, according to reports. Reisler was detained and checked for identification. She had a German passport in her name and medication in a different name, police said. Plymouth Police Sgt. Thomas Longo was notified and responded to the incident. Elmakias allegedly admitted to being behind Pizzeria Uno, although he said that he did not dump furniture, he was only turning around. Elmakias said that his destination was New York and that he was also coming from New York. He said he was in Plymouth because he was supposed to make a pickup from a male in the morning and pointed toward the Storage USA facility on Belvoir Road and West Ridge Pike, police said. Elmakias could not, however, provide a name or telephone number of the customer. Township police dispatched a request for a Motor Carrier Safety Assistance Program Inspector. Officer Gerald Schwartz of the Whitpain Police Department responded. Schwartz discovered through his investigation that the operator's log had been falsified and put the truck out of service due to violations, police said. In addition, the vehicle reportedly had numerous equipment violations that rendered the truck unsafe. Inspection of the tractor-trailer's contents revealed a load three-quarters full containing household items, including furniture and boxes. Among the items in the truck was a Sony video camera. Plymouth Police Officer David McCann reviewed the tape found inside the camera. The tape had video footage of Chicago with zoomed-in shots of the Sears Tower, according to police. The Federal Bureau of Investigation was notified of the incident and all three subjects were transported to the Plymouth Police station. The subjects were then processed through the National Crime Information Center and placed into detention, according to the report. FBI Agents James Sweeney and Richard Tofani arrived at the station and proceeded to investigate both the subjects and their belongings with the assistance of Immigration and Naturalization Services. Elmakias and Katar were eventually detained by INS and transported to a federal facility, said police. Reisler was released. All evidence collected by Plymouth and Whitpain officers was transferred to federal facilities with the exception of a VCR. Special Agent Linda Vizi, a spokeswoman for the Philadelphia FBI, could not be contacted for comment on further investigations. |
| ©The Mercury 2001 |
Written bomb threat found in immigrant trucker's papers
By STEVE STONE, The Virginian-Pilot
© October 13, 2001
SUFFOLK -- A truck driver who had just made a delivery to a plant was detained Friday after authorities found a written bomb threat against the company mixed in with his paperwork.
Authorities said the man, whose name was not released, was not believed to be a U.S. national and was being held by the Immigration and Naturalization Service.
In addition to the INS, numerous agencies are involved in the investigation, including the FBI, the Virginia Department of Emergency Management, Virginia State Police, Suffolk police and the Suffolk fire marshal's office.
Capt. James T. Judkins, a spokesman for the Department of Fire and Rescue, said the man was driving a tractor-trailer owned by a Canadian firm. He made a delivery to the Sara Lee Coffee and Tea plant in the Wilroy Industrial Park.
Plant security officers were making a routine check as the truck was leaving about 11 a.m. when the threatening note was found with ``trucking papers.'' The contents of the note were not released.
``It contained enough information to cause the plant to be evacuated and the state police bomb squad to be called,'' Judkins said.
An all-clear came at 3:30 p.m., and employees were allowed to return to work.
Capt. Arthur G. Barrett, the fire marshal, said charges are pending against the driver.
Reach Steve Stone at 446-2309 or stone@pilotonline.com
A buisness acquaintance of mine today told me her best friends husband is a big shot with Customs and works the Rainbow Bridge in Niagara Falls. She says this friend told her that one of the 19 "Most Wanted" terorists was arrested already at this bridge, and that they also caught a tractor trailer loaded with explosives.
Once again, this is ANECDOTAL, "friend of a friend" evidence and should only be taken FWIW
Me too. The Whitpain police department is walking distance...
Or else they went to 6 different cities to mail anthrax packages.
French press.
Nooooooooo....... Indiana
Well, my response is of course just speculation too, but to me, that points even more at the Islamic terrorists. The fundamentalists in the Arab world seem to be determined to try and shift blame for everything on to the Jews.
After Sep. 11th, a particularly vicious rumor going around Arab communities and nations was that 4,000 Jews who worked in the WTC had stayed home that day because they were tipped off about the attacks. While the rumor was quickly and easily debunked, the rumor's spread shows how ready some Muslims are to believe that the Jews are behind it all. Anyone wishing to start a war between Islam and "The West" would likely want to cause as much chaos as possible with tactics like this. By using Jewish sounding aliases, the terrorists could whip up support for Jewish-conspiracy theories in Arab states, hoping to get more Arabs to support their radical cause.
Depends on where they started out from, I suppose.
I thought the same thing. I think I am going through that stages of death thing right now. A few days ago I got to acceptance...now I am back in the grief stage
I'm glad to see that I'm not alone in the "blue zone". :)
Not nearly numerous enough. I think we lost the election around here...
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