Motion filed for release of man accused of lying after blasts

Prosecutors and defence lawyers today filed a joint court motion asking a judge to release one of the friends of surviving suspected Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev from federal custody while awaiting trial.
Robel Phillipos, 19, was charged last week with lying to investigators looking into the April 15 bombings. The University of Massachusetts Dartmouth student faces a maximum of eight years in prison if convicted.
Both sides said in the court motion that they agree to allow Phillipos to be released under strict conditions, including home confinement and monitoring with an electronic bracelet, along with a USD 100,000 bond.

A magistrate judge is expected to consider the request during a hearing in the afternoon today.
Tsarnaev's older brother, Tamerlan, was killed after a gunbattle with police four days after the bombings.
Phillipos is accused of lying to investigators about visiting Dzhokhar Tsarnaev's college dorm room on April 18, three days after the bombings. Two other friends were charged with conspiring to obstruct justice by taking a backpack with fireworks and a laptop from Tsarnaev's dorm room. All four had studied at UMass Dartmouth.

Defence attorneys for Phillipos said in court documents their client had nothing to do with the deadly bombings and isn't a flight risk.

Phillipos's resume, filed in court, shows he was majoring in marketing with a minor in sociology at UMass Dartmouth and expected to graduate in 2015.
The Tsarnaev brothers are accused of carrying out the bombings using pressure cookers packed with explosives, nails, ball bearings and metal shards. The attack killed three people and injured more than 260 others near the marathon's finish line.
Dzhokhar Tsarnaev was captured and remains in a prison hospital. He has been charged with using a weapon of mass destruction and faces a potential death sentence if convicted.