March 20, 2016
In a surprise development, a Mississippi grand jury has refused to indict an Iranian-American accused of making terrorist threats and assaulting two sheriff’s deputies last August.
As a result, Safa Alidoust, 32, was set free and allowed to return to his oil industry job in Louisiana.
WLOX television said the grand jury voted there was insufficient evidence to indict Alidoust on charges of falsely claiming to be carrying explosives. It is rare for grand juries to refuse a prosecution request for an indictment.
As for the assault charges, prosecutors told the TV station they had asked that those charges be dropped.
Alidoust earlier said his bizarre encounter, which closed a section of an Interstate highway for hours, had been a misunderstanding caused partly by a bad reaction he had to medication.
After the arrest, the charge for attacking two officers was raised by the sheriff from simple assault to aggravated assault. The fact that the prosecutors then asked for the judge to drop the charges entirely suggests they felt the Hancock County sheriff’s deputies had overreacted—perhaps because Alidoust was Iranian-born.
Investigators say Alidoust threatened to set off explosive devices he claimed were in his car parked alongside Interstate-10 near the Louisiana-Mississippi state line.
Officials shut down a portion of I-10 for more than two hours while the Biloxi Bomb Squad investigated the scene. Officials say no explosives were found in the car.
Earlier, a judge refused to allow Alidoust to go free while awaiting trial. His attorney argued that Alidoust deserved to be let out of jail on bond for several reasons. “He is a Louisiana resident and has been so for some time,” explained the attorney. “He is employed in Louisiana and intends to return there and does have a work visa.”
But Hancock County Sheriff Ricky Adam argued, “It’s our stance that he’s a foreign national and he made those kinds of threats and we take them seriously and we’re afraid he won’t show up for court.”
But when the grand jury met and heard all that, it decided Alidoust had committed no crime at all and should not go to trial.