Breaking: Bomb Scare in South Carolina

WLTX reports:

Police in Goose Creek, SC are investigating a bomb scare. Sources say a four-door sedan was stopped during a routine traffic stopped only to find what was believed to be a bomb inside the vehicle.

The two people in the car were said to be of Middle Eastern decent.

At this time the section of Highway 176 has been shutdown. The FBI and local police are still investigating into the matter.

No immediate threat is the latest word:

The FBI is saying there is no immediate threat after police in Goose Creek discovered what they believed were explosives during a traffic stop.

That doesn’t tell us much. The FBI is still working. ABC4 in Charleston has a bit more:

In addition to the FBI, authorities from Goose Creek, Berkeley County, and South Carolina Law Enforcement Division are on scene. The Charleston County bomb squad has also been called. Officials on scene say that neighbors are in no immediate danger. They also report that they are unsure if a crime has been committed. This ongoing investigation will help them determine the exact details regarding this event.

The FBI may be working but they aren’t saying much:

WIS News 10 talked to an FBI spokesperson who told us she could neither confirm or deny a possible link between the vehicle and a terrorist plot.

At least one blogger has driven by the scene:

I ran into a detour tonight on the way to my home in Goose Creek SC from Summerville. Highway 176 was blocked off.

WCBD Charleston reports:

Agents deployed a robot and pulled what looks like a duffle bag from the trunk.

According to the Berkeley County Sheriff’s department, deputies closed Highway 176 after finding what they thought were explosives in the trunk of a car at about 6:00 Saturday night.

According to Lt. Vince Lombardo, deputies discovered the suspicious items in the trunk during a traffic stop. The two men inside the vehicle are detained at the scene. Lombardo also said information from an investigation in another jurisdiction raised the suspicions of the deputies.

Another jurisdiction? This is getting interesting.

Those of you asking “Why South Carolina?” might find this interesting too:

Law enforcement officials closed the road about 7 p.m. after the traffic stop in Goose Creek, home to the Naval Weapons Station. The station houses the U.S. Naval Consolidated Brig, a military prison where enemy combatants have been held.

I just got off the phone someone from the Naval Weapons Station. “Nobody has any comment” is all I could get out of them. It was a very annoyed “no comment” at that.

Not much is leaking out but it still sounds like there’s something to this story:

By 11:20 p.m., there were more than a dozen police cars, fire trucks, and an ambulance surrounding a gray sedan. A bomb squad robot was looking into the trunk of the car, and the passenger’s door was open. The Red Cross had also arrived on the scene.

At 11:45 p.m., Julie Johnson, assistant special agent-in-charge, FBI-Columbia, told reporters amassed at the Kingdom Hall of Jehovah’s Witnesses that she would answer no questions, but that the FBI was still trying to determine if a crime had been committed.

She said the agency was working with state and local agencies, and that they were going to be there a long time.

Ace has reservations:

I don’t want to oversell the threat, because the leftwing blogs will make fun of me if I so much as hint as this may be a real plot, as we all know the idea of Muslim men using bombs to kill civilians is as implausible as, say, a raunchy teen sex comedy using half the music from Pirates of Penzance and mixing them with sub-Abba post-disco bubblegum pop.

The Post and Courier has added photos of the bomb squad at work to their story. Other then that update the story appears to gone quiet for the night. I’ll post an update in the morning.

Update II:
There is still not much being said about this story which is unusual given the latest developments:

Berkeley County sheriff’s Lieutenant Vince Lombard says that the men were being held Sunday morning pending a charge of unlawful possession of an explosive device.

Lombard would not say what the device was or what bomb technicians from neighboring Charleston County exploded about 2:45 this morning.

Unlawful possession of an explosive device could probably encompass anything from fireworks to a tactical nuke. Google the term and you’ll find that most links point to cases where violence was intended.

Update III – Sunday 5:00 PM CST:
Finally, some information. Well, at least a reason to believe that we’ll get some information:

Berkeley County Chief Deputy Butch Henerey said authorities will identify the men and disclose more details about the case Monday during an 11:30 a.m. news conference.

He said the Sheriff’s Office will file state charges against the men. It was not known whether the FBI plans to file federal charges.

This case has been handled in such an odd manner. Authorities haven’t really explained except to say that there was no “immediate threat.” That leaves room for all sorts of possibilities. I still think there may be something to this story. Stay tuned.

Update IV – Sunday 7:30 PM:
A little more information now. It still looks like these two were up to no good:

The men 21-year-old Yousef Megahed and 24-year-old Ahmed Mohamed were pulled over Saturday evening during a routine traffic stop near Myers Road and Highway 176. Among the explosive devices found were igniters and fusers. Few details about the suspects are known at this time. They are believed to be students at a Florida college. They are of Middle Eastern descent and are not US citizens. Neither man has been charged, but charges are expected Monday. A press conference will be held in Berkeley County on Monday morning. Among the potential charges is possession of unlawful explosives.

The FBI is going out of it’s way, as usual it would seem, to deny a link to terrorism. I can’t wait to hear their story for this.

Updates to this post are closed. Any new information will appear in new posts.

Also Blogging:
Michelle Malkin
Sister Toldjah
Pajamas Media
Riehl World View
The Jawa Report
Flopping Aces
The Astute Bloggers
The American Pundit
Nice Deb
Pal2Pal
America’s North Shore Journal
Noisy Room
Rantburg
Jules Crittenden
Little Green Footballs

Related posts:
Steam Explosion Scare in New York City
A steam explosion doesn’t sound like an event that would freak out a city like New York – but watch the video. Digg this post Recommend on Facebook Share on...

Ron Paul Supporters Scare Me
Ron Paul supporters are flooding YouTube, and my inbox, with their conspiracy-laced ramblings. I’ve watched a few of these videos, like the one above, and most of these people are...

U.S. Navy Blue Angels F/A-18 Jet Crashes at South Carolina Airshow
They make it look easy but it isn’t: A jet flying in formation with the U.S. Navy Blue Angels precision flying team crashed into a Beaufort, South Carolina, neighborhood, causing...

Video: Scare Tactics Rat Monster and PETA Guy
This clip is hilarious. I’d like to see an entire series dedicated to scaring the crap out of PETA activists. Digg this post Recommend on Facebook Share on Linkedin Share...

Video: Homemade Bomb
We used to tape firecrackers together when I was a kid. This stuff is just crazy. The description at YouTube didn’t really prepare me for the video: Marcel and his...