2 Arrested in Foreign Student’s Killing
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TAMPA, Fla. — Police arrested two men Monday in the beating death of a 17-year-old student from Turkey who was apparently attacked after a traffic altercation.
The body of Mehmet Bahar was discovered by a jogger early Saturday in a quiet Tampa neighborhood near his host family’s residence. He had come to the United States about five weeks ago to study English.
Bahar was the 10th foreigner killed in Florida in a year. However, there is no evidence he was targeted because he was a foreigner, Tampa police spokesman Steve Cole said Monday night.
Robert John Barthmaier, 24, and Joseph Paul Wagner, 25, both of Tampa, were arrested at their homes and charged with first-degree murder and attempted robbery and burglary, Cole said.
Bahar may have cut in front of their vehicle, police said. The two men then followed him home and attacked him, Cole said.
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