Fri Sep 13, 9:56 AM ET
By CATHERINE WILSON, Associated Press Writer

MIAMI (AP) - Three people in two cars that ran an interstate toll booth were detained Friday, and Alligator Alley, the main east-west highway through the Everglades, was shutdown because of a possible terrorist threat.

Bomb-sniffing dogs alerted authorities to material in both vehicles, but no explosives were immediately found, said E.J. Picolo of the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. Authorities blasted open what appeared to be a backpack taken from one of the vehicles.

"We're taking it very serious until we can eliminate the possibility of a threat or verify that there was a legitimate threat," Picolo said.

Picolo said all three people in the vehicles had been identified and were legally in the country, but he would not provide futher information about them. The three were being detained and had not been arrested, he said.

The cars, both with Illinois license plates, remained on Interstate 75 about 50 yards apart. The Florida Highway Patrol shut down a 20-mile stretch after 1 a.m., when the vehicles were stopped.

Two bomb squad technicians in hoods and protective blast suits removed a suitcase and plastic bags from one car and searched the interior and trunk. A robot was also brought to the scene, though it wasn't immediately clear how it would be used. (They detonated a "suspicious package")

Police had tracked down the cars after one of them ran a toll plaza, Lt. John Bagnardi of Florida Highway Patrol told CNN. He said the people pulled over were uncooperative and refused to allow a search. Authorities brought in the bomb-sniffing dogs.

The highway was still closed more than eight hours later.

The Georgia Bureau of Investigation had issued an advisory for the same two cars Thursday after a waitress in Calhoun, Ga., in the northwestern part of that state, told police she overheard three men who appeared to be Middle Eastern descent discussing terrorist plans Wednesday night. (She jotted down the liscence plate number - Illinois)

The Georgia woman said the men were talking about amounts of explosives and warned that Americans would "cry on 9/13," said Miami Police Lt. Bill Schwartz, quoting from the Georgia advisory.

Alligator Alley is the main road from Naples to Fort Lauderdale across the Everglades in South Florida.

The highway patrol said the road was blocked off from a toll booth east of Naples to State Road 29.


...

Apparently, I'm hearing now that police have raided a residence in Chcago, where the three men are reported to have been from.

Could be nothing...could be something...

Give this woman a cookie...GREAT JOB!!! And to think...none of John Ashcroft's unconstitutional policies were needed to foil this crime...:ROLL:

SkletonKee said:

Well, they're not charged with anything so far...

If I understand this correctly, and the woman foiled a terrorist attack (they were allegedly headed for Miami and overheard saying "If they thought 9/11 was bad, wait until they see 9/13" - or something to that effect), she's supposed to get a million bucks, not a cookie.

Anybody ever notice they STILL haven't caught the bastard(s) that bombed the Atlanta Olympics?

what? a million? DAMN!!! Actually, it would be more like 600k...you gotta consider taxes and all...

and since buddy Bush has put us into major deficit (and not just because of military spending)...we are gonna need every penny...



the police have had to blow up stuff that was found in the car...so its a safe bet to say she is in da money.


COUNT DE MONEY!!! COUNT DE MONEY!!!

-Thats Monai...

Good for her! Thank goodness she was alert.

sag10 said:

aint it rude to find out that it was just a joke..and her damn kid told her *that* at the time...



stupid lady!! give her the 1mil check and then snatch it bad and wave your finger at it...