Caught on tape: Deputies denigrate USF explosives duo

A South Carolina sheriff's deputy and his partner referred to Youssef Megahed and Ahmed Mohamed as "graduates of suicide bomber school" and called them members of the "Taliban" during their arrest, according to federal court documents filed today.

Berkeley County Sheriff's Department Deputy Lamar Blakely also joked that Megahed and Mohamed had copies of the Koran in their possession, court records say.

The remarks taint the entire investigation and should prevent the government from using any evidence gathered during it, a defender argues in a motion.

The deputies' behavior was caught on video by a camera mounted on the dash of their cruiser during an Aug. 4 traffic stop near Goose Creek, S.C., that ended with the two suspended University of South Florida students being arrested and charged with carrying explosive materials.

"Shockingly, on the video, Deputy Blakely even expresses concern over the fact that his ethically-inappropriate remarks were being recorded by his in-vehicle video recorder," assistant federal public defender James W. Smith III wrote in a motion. "These and other inappropriate, ethnically-stereotyping comments occurred prior to the search and discovery of any items in the vehicle and shockingly illustrate that Deputy Blakely's decision to search the vehicle was not based on reasonable suspicion of unlawful acts but upon nothing more than his own biased, unlawful racial profiling."

The Federal Public Defender's Office is representing Megahed, 21, who along with Mohamed, 26, remains in a Hillsborough County jail. They could go to trial as early as March.

Smith filed a motion to suppress any physical evidence or statements made by Megahed during the traffic stop.

Blakely did a records check after stopping the pair for speeding and found that Mohamed, who was driving, had a valid license and there was no warrant for either of their arrests. The car was also properly registered, Smith said.

"Once Deputy Blakely conducted his records check and had all the information he needed to issue a traffic citation, the traffic investigation was over and the vehicle and its occupants should have been free to leave," Smith wrote.

Instead, the men were ordered out of the car. They consented to a search and were placed in handcuffs when deputies found a box of bullets beneath a seat.

Megahed, of Tampa Palms, was questioned about the contents of the car, but Blakely never read him his Miranda rights, Smith said.

"Such questioning by Deputy Blakely was illegal," Smith wrote.

The men told the deputies they were on a road trip to see the beaches of South Carolina with fireworks in their trunk.

"Despite this benign explanation, for some unknown reason, Deputy Blakely was unsatisfied with the response and continued to question Mr. Mohamed in a very aggressive and detailed manner," Smith wrote. "A viewing of the video tape makes it clear that nothing in the responses given by Mr. Mohamed or Mr. Megahed would lead a reasonable law enforcement officer to conclude that any illegal activity was taking place."

-- Kevin Graham, Times staff writer