Former USF student convicted in gun range case

Update: U.S. District Judge James Whittemore today revoked Karim Moussaoui's bond, citing him as a flight risk. Moussaoui remains in custody.

TAMPA -- Former University of South Florida student Karim Moussaoui has been found guilty of violating his student visa by possessing a gun, charges brought after he was seen and videotaped [watch video] at a gun range holding a rifle.

The jury in U.S. District Court deliberated two hours before returning shortly before 3 p.m. to announce its decision. Prosecutors immediately moved to have the Moroccan native taken into custody because he faces jail time. He has been free on bond.   

U.S. District Judge James Whittemore said that based upon the engineering student's clean record and the non-violent nature of the crime, he faces a possible sentence of around 27 to 33 months in prison. Whittemore scheduled a hearing on possible bail for 4 p.m. today. 

Moussaoui graduated with a computer engineering degree from USF in December and had planned to return to Morocco to work in his family's business.

Prosecutors showed the jurors video from the Shoot Straight gun range on U.S. Highway 301 that showed Moussaoui there on July 19 with Youssef Megahed.

Megahed, 22, and Ahmed Mohamed, 26, are suspended University of South Florida students scheduled for trial March 28 on a federal explosives charge. Moussaoui's former attorney once called the government's prosecution of Moussaoui a ploy to keep him in the country to testify in the Megahed trial.

Prosecutors charged Moussaoui, 28, with violating his student visa by posing for a photograph with the rifle that day last summer. Federal law prohibits people with student visas from possessing firearms.

A gun range member testified this week that the man in the video with Megahed fired the weapon.

"He was shooting when I got there," Bobby Robinson said of the man, whom Megahed had given a rented Walther G22 rifle.

Defense attorney Deeann Athan has said that Moussaoui held the gun for 2 1/2 minutes to pose for pictures but that he never fired it and it wasn't loaded.

Mossaoui showed no emotion when the verdict was announced. After the jury left, he turned and hugged his father, who kissed him on both cheeks. 

-Kevin Graham, Times staff writer