2 foreign officers accused of attempted abduction

ST. LOUIS (AP) - Two foreign military officers attending training at Fort Leonard Wood have pleaded not guilty to charges in an attempted child abduction case.

Mohammed Mahmoud Omar Mefleh, 34, of Jordan, and Antoine Chela, 31, of Lebanon, are charged with enticement of a child and harassment and are being held in the Pulaski County jail on $200,000 bail each, according to online court records. The defendants pleaded not guilty last week.

A lawyer listed for Mefleh didn't return a call seeking comment Monday. An attorney wasn't listed yet for Chela.

Fort Leonard Wood spokeswoman Tiffany Wood said the men were part of the International Military Student Office and were at the base temporarily to learn how to be better commanders.

"They were here attending routine training," she said.

Mefleh arrived in April to take the U.S. Army Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear Captains Career Course. Chela arrived in October for the Engineering Captains Career Course.

Court records show a 12-year-old girl told police two men approached her last week at a bus stop near St. Robert and tried to get her to get in their car. She said they later showed up at the front door of her home and asked her to unlock it.

After the men left, she flagged down a passing fire truck and reported the incident. About a half-hour later, police arrested Mefleh and Chela, the records show.

Pulaski County Sheriff Ron Long said the case has put communities outside the military base on alert.

"As you can imagine, it has been alarming to a lot of people down here," Long said.