Robel Phillipos

Robel Phillipos, a college friend of Boston Marathon bombing suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, left, arrives at federal court with attorney Derege Demissie, before a hearing Thursday, May 15, 2014, in Boston. Phillipos, of Cambridge, Mass., is charged with lying to investigators after last year's fatal bombing. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

(Steven Senne)

DENISE LAVOIE, AP Legal Affairs Writer



BOSTON (AP) -- A lawyer claiming to represent friends of Boston Marathon bombing suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev called the state police barracks while they were being questioned, but the men were never told about the call, prosecutors said Thursday.

Federal prosecutors made the disclosure in a written court filing as testimony continued on a defense motion to suppress statements made by the men.

Dias Kadyrbayev and Azamat Tazhayakov allegedly confessed to removing a backpack containing fireworks and a laptop computer from Tsarnaev's dorm room several days after the bombings. All three men were students at the University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth.

The two sides are arguing over whether the statements were voluntary and can be used as evidence in the upcoming trial. Prosecutors have said the men willingly spoke to federal agents after being told of their right to remain silent and to contact a lawyer.

In the court filing, prosecutors said a state trooper took a call at the barracks where the men were being questioned from a man who identified himself as an attorney and said he didn't want the men answering any questions. The trooper said he told a federal agent about the call.

The filing includes a Wednesday email exchange between the trooper and one of the agents who questioned Kadyrbayev. The state trooper recalled that the lawyer who called the barracks said he represented the UMass students being questioned there.

The trooper said he "had no idea whether the caller was an actual attorney or some crackpot who was calling due to the media coverage." The trooper said the lawyer said he was contacted by the state's public defender agency and told to call the barracks.

The trooper said he told the attorney that one of the agents had just told him that the student who was being questioned at the time, Kadyrbayev, had been "cooperative and had agreed to speak with them of his own free will."

The trooper said he told one of the federal agents involved in interviewing Kadyrbayev about the attorney's call. Kadyrbayev's lawyer argues that conversation should have trigged "numerous legal consequences" that mean the statements should be suppressed.

In their filing, prosecutors say agents involved in the questioning recalled being told of the conversation "after the defendants had made all the admissions they made that night regarding entering Tsarnaev's dorm room and removing items."

Kadyrbayev is the only one of three Tsarnaev friends who has agreed to testify during the suppression hearing. Lawyers for Tazhayakov and a third friend, Robel Phillipos, have said they will not testify. Phillipos is accused of lying to investigators.

None of the men is accused of being involved in the marathon bombing or knowing about the attack ahead of time.

Two bombs placed near the finish line of the 2013 marathon killed three people and injured more than 260. Tsarnaev has pleaded not guilty to 30 federal charges and is awaiting trial in November. His brother, Tamerlan Tsarnaev, also a suspect in the bombings, died following a shootout with police several days later.

U.S. District Judge Douglas Woodlock has not yet ruled on the motion. Kadyrbayev is expected to testify Friday.