Prosecutors agree to release of teen in Boston bomb case

By Tim McLaughlin

BOSTON (Reuters) - Prosecutors have agreed to the release of a teenager accused of lying to FBI agents in the Boston Marathon bombing investigation while he awaits trial, according to a court filing on Monday.

Prosecutors and defense lawyers for Robel Phillipos plan to ask U.S. Magistrate Judge Marianne Bowler to grant the 19-year-old a pretrial release under strict conditions. The court has not yet ruled on the joint motion. Phillipos was expected to appear at 2 p.m. (1800 GMT) hearing Monday in Boston.

Defense lawyers and prosecutors "conferred extensively" and agreed the court could have Phillipos ordered to home confinement at the residence of a third-party custodian, the court filing said. He would wear an electronic bracelet with GPS monitoring and post a $100,000 bond to ensure his appearance in future court proceedings.

Phillipos, of Cambridge, Massachusetts, is accused of making false statements to FBI agents investigating the April 15th attack that killed three people and injured 264 near the marathon's finish line.

Defense lawyers argued he was not a flight risk, has no prior criminal history and can refute FBI allegations that he interfered with their investigation, court records show. In affidavits of support filed with the court, Phillipos is described as the caring son of a social worker who read to kindergarten students.

Last week, U.S. authorities charged Phillipos and two 19-year-old students from Kazakhstan with interfering with their investigation as a manhunt for brothers Tamerlan and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev was under way.

The three teens are described as college friends of surviving suspect, 19-year-old Dzhokhar Tsarnaev. Authorities charged the Kazakhs, Azamat Tazhayakov and Dias Kadyrbayev, with conspiring to obstruct justice by disposing of a backpack containing fireworks they found in Tsarnaev's dorm room.

Lawyers for Phillipos point out that he has not been charged with removing or tampering with evidence, but with lying to authorities about the conduct of his friends.

Their cover-up, as alleged by investigators, happened after the FBI released surveillance photos of Dzhokhar and his older brother, Tamerlan Tsarnaev. The elder Tsarnaev, 26, was killed and Dzhokhar was found bleeding while hiding in a covered boat in a back yard in Watertown.

Phillipos was born in Boston and raised in Cambridge as part of a loving Ethiopian extended family, according to affidavits filed in federal court on his behalf.

Richard Feigenberg, who taught math to Phillipos in the seventh and eighth grades, described his former student as a caring member of the school community.

"When I asked for someone to take out the trash or read to a kindergarten student, it was most often Robel who volunteered," Feigenberg said in an affidavit. "He always had a wonderful smile that warmed the whole classroom."

Relatives of Phillipos described him as a kind, polite and respectful young man, according to affidavits.

"When I heard the news of Robel's arrest, I was extremely shocked and heartbroken," said Kifle Alemu, an uncle. "I was unable to wrap my mind around what was going on, especially knowing Robel as a gentle young man who has never been in any trouble."

(Editing by Doina Chiacu)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/teenager-accused-lying-boston-bomb-case-released-150356707.html

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