Posted on 09/19/2002 11:52:38 AM PDT by meia
Earlier reports from authorities said that Kambiz Butt ran the tollbooth without paying.
Thursday, September 19, 2002
By BRIGID O'MALLEY, bmomalley@naplesnews.com
The Collier County Sheriff's Office has voided the ticket given to the driver of one of the cars stopped on Alligator Alley last week during a terrorism scare, saying the tollkeeper Wednesday recalled taking the $1.50 from the man.
"She was very nervous at the time," said Collier Sheriff Don Hunter.
He said the tollbooth attendant, who had earlier given a sworn statement that the driver hadn't paid, had spotted the tag on the front of the car which had been given as part of a description to all tollkeepers in the state as a car that needed to be stopped by authorities.
"She became flustered and didn't recall," Hunter said. He said it was a Car Max tag on the front of the car that caught her attention.
Earlier reports from authorities said that Kambiz Butt, 25, the driver of one of the two cars stopped on the Alley on Friday to be checked out for a possible terrorism-related incident, ran the tollbooth without paying.
Alligator Alley was shut down in both directions for 17 hours, and the men, who were headed to Larkin Hospital in South Miami to start work as medical students, were detained between 11:45 p.m. Thursday and 6 p.m. Friday while they were questioned by local, state and federal authorities.
Eunice Stone reported to police that they'd been in a Shoney's restaurant in Calhoun, Ga., on Thursday morning and were laughing about the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks and saying that another, even worse, attack was set for Sept. 13, the day they were stopped at Mile Marker No. 92 on the interstate. The Georgia Bureau of Investigation issued the alert.
All three men, Ayman Gheith, 27, Omar Choudhary, 23, and Butt, who are of Middle Eastern descent, have denied talking about Sept. 11 or any attacks on Miami. They've appeared on news shows around the nation since the stop.
But a Collier deputy, Darrel Kehne, on special patrol, looking for the cars and their occupants, spotted the two cars and stopped them. A Collier sheriff's bomb detection dog alerted on the rear of both cars and that brought dozens of officers to the Alley.
Authorities after the daylong investigation, which included a search by a bomb-detecting robot, helicopters bearing special equipment and a thorough scouring of the cars, determined the incident was a hoax. The searches turned up no signs of explosives or bomb-making material.
Deputies, after interviewing the tollkeeper after the stop, wrote a ticket — the fine is $100 plus $26 in court costs — to Butt.
But the videotape at the tollbooth on Interstate 75 also shows a transaction between Butt and the tollbooth attendant, Hunter said. The ticket should be officially voided today, Hunter said.
Hunter said investigators showed the tollkeeper, who'd already given a sworn statement saying Butt's car had run the tollbooth, the video which logs the transaction Wednesday.
"He reached his hand out. She reached her hand out," Hunter said. "There appears to have been a transaction. Then she excitedly waves her hand toward the east. We believe she was trying to flag us down."
Butt contended that he paid the toll, Hunter said.
"It would not be fair not to check it out," he said.
He said the second car did stop and ask if Butt had paid the toll.
Hunter described the toll taker as "nervous" at the time.
"She said she wasn't scared," he said.
David Kubiliun, one of the attorneys representing the men, said they are pleased the ticket was voided.
"My understanding is that it was voided because videotape showed Mr. Butt did pay the toll," Kubiliun said. "He's very pleased. We're all gratified."
Hunter speculated the attorneys will try to take on other aspects of the stop.
"I'm sure their attorneys will say, 'If this was wrong, what else was wrong?' " Hunter said. "But I'm firm on the rest of it."
He said investigators are still running down other parts of the probe, which he didn't disclose.
"We haven't reached any dead ends," Hunter said.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
But the police do not have to talk to the media and give them a running commentary on what they find. For example, instead of announcing that the license plate was fake, they could have waited until they got confirmation from Illinois, which they did later. Also, instead of saying the dogs found explosives, they could have waited until they searched the cars and then announced that they found no explosives in the cars. They also could have checked out the toll booth tapes first instead of announcing that they had not paid.
Did you forget that the poor sensitive Islamist "victims" admit to saying that America would weep on September 13th more than they had on September 11th at the Shoney's because they didn't like they way Eunice Stone was looking at them?
This is false. They never admitted that. If they had then the police would not have to investigate to find out if they had indeed done this. This is soley police speculation on this point. The students have consistantly denied saying anything about 9/11 or 9/13 or anything else for that matter.
They have been saying that the second car paid both tolls. Now we find out that both cars paid.
Which is it boys?
So according to you they ate their meal at Shoney's in total silence. That Eunice Stone is such a liar.
I'm sorry. Are you talking to me?
I have no idea. I wasn't there. In fact I don't know how anyone can state that they know without a doubt what happened in that Shoney's. Except for Ms. Stone and the 3 students.
I support that GREAT AMERICAN, EUNICE STONE!!
Those lying, "can't get their story right for cr@p guys", need to be investigated up the wahzoooh!!
You're right, Princess Moonbeam. No one can ever know really anything, and for the police to act on any terrorist information is a travesty of justice.
They should at least have the decency to wait until the bodies start hitting the asphalt.
Ann Coulter is quoting speculation from police and news sources about what happened. There are absolutely no quotes from the 3 students to back up what she says they said. I don't know, Ann Coulter doesn't know and you don't know what was actually said in that Shoney's.
I just like to paint myself into corners to see if I can get out.
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