Jailhouse snitch?

Apparently someone at the federal jail claims that a defendant in the Joe Cool case confessed. Smells fishy to me. Here and here are the articles.

Joe Cool case to Judge Huck

The parties better get ready for trial!

No bond for the Joe Cool defendants

Today, Magistrate Judge Bandstra denied the bond requests by the Joe Cool defendants. (via Miami Herald , AP and Sun-Sentinel).


"In this courtroom sketch, Kirby Logan Archer, 35, of Strawberry, Ark., left, and Guillermo Zarabozo, 19, of Hialeah, right, appear in federal court in Miami. The men, who were picked up in a life raft after hiring a charter boat to take them to the Bahamas, have been charged with murder in the incident. The boat's four crew members are still missing. (AP/Shirley Henderson / September 26, 2007) "

Joe Cool charges -- First Degree Murder

We don't get many first degree murder cases in federal court (this one can be charged in federal court because the alleged murders occurred on the high seas), so that alone makes the Joe Cool case fascinating. Add to it that there are no bodies, weapon, or confession and you have all the makings of an unbelievable trial that should be covered on Court TV. But, (as I have complained of many times before) we have no cameras in federal court, so you'll just have to check in here to get your updates. (Our prior coverage of the case is here).

Here's the Sun-Sentinel coverage, the AP, the Miami Herald.

U.S. Attorney Alex Acosta on the case: "We believe the evidence is strong. We shouldn't shy away from a case just because it's not an easy one." He said Kirby Archer, 35, of Strawberry, Ark., and Guillermo Zarabozo, 20, of Hialeah, murdered the crew "in cold blood."

From the Herald article:

Archer's attorney, former federal prosecutor Allan Kaiser, said the charges were hollow.
''They're under the gun,'' Kaiser said. 'The magistrate judge said last week, `You better come up with more evidence.' This is the evidence? I don't see a first-degree, premeditated murder case predicated on alleged inconsistent statements.''

No bond for the Joe Cool defendants

So ruled Magistrate Judge William Turnoff.

Press coverage here, here, and here.

Apparently the feds have more evidence -- like shell casings, blow gun darts, and knives. Plus it looks like they were headed to Cuba, where they couldn't be extradited to the U.S.

In this courtroom sketch, Kirby Logan Archer, 35, of Strawberry, Ark., left, and Guillermo Zarabozo, 19, of Hialeah, Fla., right, appear in federal court in Miami Wednesday, Sept. 26, 2007. (AP Photo/Shirley Henderson)

The criminal complaints in the Joe Cool case

Here's the one for Defendant Kirby Archer. He's currently charged only with trying to evade prosecution in Arkansas where a warrant had been issued for his arrest. But the complaint details some of the evidence that the feds currently have about the missing passengers on the Joe Cool, like the blood, marijuana and handcuffs they found.

And here's the complaint for Guillermo Zarabozo. He's charged with making false statements about pirates and not recognizing the Joe Cool.

We'll find out more about the case at the bond hearing on Tuesday.

News and notes

We have a jury in the Liberty City 7 case. Here's the AP story about the jury:

Opening statements start Tuesday.

Also Tuesday is the bond hearing in the ghost ship Joe Cool case. We'll find out a lot more about the government's case then. Federal defender's office represents one. The other - Allan Kaiser, former AUSA who was appointed.

Joe Cool mystery

Vanessa Blum details here the mystery surrounding the Joe Cool boat and its missing passengers and the arrest of two men pulled from a lifeboat near the abandoned boat:

On Tuesday, Kirby Archer, 35, and Guillermo Zarabozo, 19, were charged, respectively, with unlawful flight to avoid prosecution and making a false statement to a federal agent, according to FBI spokeswoman Judy Orihuela. The men had been questioned by agents since they were plucked from a life raft Monday morning.

Here's the AP article, which details some of the criminal complaint:

According to an FBI affidavit, Zarabozo initially claimed to his Coast Guard rescuers that "unknown subjects" had hijacked the boat, shot and killed the four crew members and then ordered Zarabozo to throw the bodies into the sea. Zarabozo later told the FBI he had never been on the "Joe Cool," even though his state identification card was found on the boat.
The affidavit also says that a substance appearing to be blood was found on the stern of the boat, along with six marijuana cigarettes, a laptop computer, luggage, clothes and a cell phone.
Archer, the affidavit said, admitted that he was a fugitive and knew that he could not travel by air.
Both men were being held without bail at a federal detention center in Miami.

And the Herald article here.