USF Grad Who Held Gun Denied Bail

TAMPA A University of South Florida graduate convicted of a federal weapons charge for holding a rifle for 2 1/2 minutes won't be freed on bail while he waits to find out his sentence, a judge ruled this afternoon.

A federal prosecutor argued successfully that Karim Moussaoui should be jailed because he poses a flight risk.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert Monk argued, in part, that Moussaoui has a powerful incentive to go back to his home country of Morocco because if he is released, immigration officials will jail him so they may deport him.

Moussaoui was two days from graduating from USF with three computer degrees when he was arrested and charged with possessing a firearm in violation of his student visa, a charge that carries a maximum of 10 years in federal prison.

Maoussaoui came to the attention of federal law enforcement officials after two of his fellow students - Youssef Megahed and Ahmed Mohamed - were arrested in South Carolina Aug. 4 and charged with transporting explosives. Mohamed also was charged with trying to help terrorists by posting on the Internet a video in which he demonstrated how to use a remote-controlled toy to detonate a bomb.

Investigators turned up pictures of Mousssaoui visiting a shooting range with Megahed, and he was arrested on the federal weapons offense. Megahed, who is a permanent, legal resident of the United States, did not violate the law when he rented the rifle at Shoot Straight Tampa. But Moussaouiwas was not legally allowed to possess a weapon because his status is that of a non-immigrant visitor.

Defense attorney Deann Athan argued that Moussaoui should not be jailed until he is sentenced because Moussaoui is likely to receive probation because "everything about his possession [of the gun] was lawful other than the fact that he's a prohibited class for possession purposes," she said.

Monk said the question relating to the likely sentence under federal guidelines comes down to whether Moussaoui had the gun for lawful purposes, such as sporting. Monk pointed out that Moussaoui testified that he didn't go to the firing range to shoot the firearm, and that he insisted that the weapon be unloaded before he held it. "He possessed it for non-sporting purposes, to pose for photographs," the prosecutor said, and therefore should face a longer sentence. Monk previously estimated that the advisory guidelines provided for a prison sentence of between 27 and 33 months.

Monk said Tuesday that Moussaoui is "not trustworthy." The prosecutor noted that Moussaoui has enrolled in a course at Everest College "solely for the ulterior purpose of extending his student visa."

Athan responded that Moussaoui did what he could to keep his visa legal because he was forced to remain in this country to face the criminal charges. Moussaoui wanted to go home to Morrocco after his USF graduation, she said. "He wanted to be legal," Athan said. "If we're going to keep him here, he's going to do what he can to keep himself in legal status."

"He's here, not because he was forced, but because he committed a federal offense," U.S. District Judge James Whittemore said. "The laws of this country make what he did a federal crime ... His status is transparent at best." The judge referred to Everest College as "an institution I have never heard of before."

After Megahed and Mohamed were arrested, Moussaoui was interviewed by agents for a total of 20 hours about the two Egyptian nationals. His attorneys say he told investigators everything he knew.

Monk said today that Moussaoui was deceptive. The prosecutor said Moussaoui failed to tell agents he had seen Mohamed's video. Monk said he knows this because another witness, Mohamed Ebede, has told agents that Moussaoui told the witness that Mohamed made a "bad video" and was stupid for posting it on the Internet.