Briton in Immigration Chains over Debt
May 1st 2004, 5:50 am
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Briton in Immigration Chains over Debt
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http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main...9%2Fnjfk29.xml
Briton 'in chains at JFK airport over bogus debt'
By Rosemary Behan
(Filed: 29/04/2004)
An accountant claims that he was kept for more than 24 hours in "leg chains" and denied food and water after flying into New York's JFK airport with his wife.
David Pattison, 52, of Beeston, Norfolk, was held by US security officials because an Interpol notice alleged that he was wanted in Qatar for debts of up to $10,000 (£5,800).
He was deported on Monday night without having been allowed to enter America.
Mr Pattison, who disputes the alleged debt, said he was subjected to "inhumane and degrading" treatment by the US authorities and a "lack of assistance" by the Foreign Office.
He arrived at the airport's immigration control on Sunday afternoon, at what was to have been the start of a two-week holiday with his wife, Janice, 49, the mother of their six children.
There he was told of the Interpol notice. Mr Pattison worked for an oil company in the Gulf state in 1999 but denies that he left behind any debts. Although about $5,000 (£2,900) had been outstanding on a car he used for work, this was settled after the agreed sale of the vehicle in 2000.
"This was the first I had heard of any warrant against me, and I have travelled all over Europe since 1999," said Mr Pattison.
"I told the US officials I had a letter at home to prove all matters in Qatar had been settled but they were not interested."
Mr Pattison was then told he would not be allowed into the country and would be deported. "I requested a call to the British consulate in New York and I spoke to a man who refused to give his surname. He said he couldn't help because I hadn't been admitted to the country and I was in limbo.
"But that is exactly when British subjects in a situation such as mine need assistance. God knows what it would have been like had we been travelling with our children."
Mr Pattison claims his wife was then escorted out of the room in tears and left to fend for herself. He said cuffs were placed on his hands and ankles and that a wooden restraint was put across his chest.
"I was escorted to a facility with no food or drink and my angina medication was locked away from me. I was placed with eight other unfortunates, two of whom were also British, but we weren't allowed to speak to each other.
"We begged for water but the [Department for Homeland Security] staff just sat there eating hamburgers. There was nowhere to wash or sleep and I observed verbal abuse by US immigration personnel to most of these people."
A spokesman for the US Embassy in London said it had no details on Mr Pattison's case.
The Foreign Office said it was "not in a position to intervene in the immigration process" of the United States.
Interpol, the international police organisation, said it could not confirm whether a notice had been issued against Mr Pattison.
However, for an Interpol notice to be issued, a person has to be charged with an offence in court in the country in question and the legal veracity of the case agreed by Interpol lawyers.
A spokesman for the Qatar Embassy said it was concerned by Mr Pattison's case as it had no knowledge that he was being sought.
External links
JFK Airport
US Embassy, London
Qatar Embassy, London
Foreign Office
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http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main...9%2Fnjfk29.xml
Briton 'in chains at JFK airport over bogus debt'
By Rosemary Behan
(Filed: 29/04/2004)
An accountant claims that he was kept for more than 24 hours in "leg chains" and denied food and water after flying into New York's JFK airport with his wife.
David Pattison, 52, of Beeston, Norfolk, was held by US security officials because an Interpol notice alleged that he was wanted in Qatar for debts of up to $10,000 (£5,800).
He was deported on Monday night without having been allowed to enter America.
Mr Pattison, who disputes the alleged debt, said he was subjected to "inhumane and degrading" treatment by the US authorities and a "lack of assistance" by the Foreign Office.
He arrived at the airport's immigration control on Sunday afternoon, at what was to have been the start of a two-week holiday with his wife, Janice, 49, the mother of their six children.
There he was told of the Interpol notice. Mr Pattison worked for an oil company in the Gulf state in 1999 but denies that he left behind any debts. Although about $5,000 (£2,900) had been outstanding on a car he used for work, this was settled after the agreed sale of the vehicle in 2000.
"This was the first I had heard of any warrant against me, and I have travelled all over Europe since 1999," said Mr Pattison.
"I told the US officials I had a letter at home to prove all matters in Qatar had been settled but they were not interested."
Mr Pattison was then told he would not be allowed into the country and would be deported. "I requested a call to the British consulate in New York and I spoke to a man who refused to give his surname. He said he couldn't help because I hadn't been admitted to the country and I was in limbo.
"But that is exactly when British subjects in a situation such as mine need assistance. God knows what it would have been like had we been travelling with our children."
Mr Pattison claims his wife was then escorted out of the room in tears and left to fend for herself. He said cuffs were placed on his hands and ankles and that a wooden restraint was put across his chest.
"I was escorted to a facility with no food or drink and my angina medication was locked away from me. I was placed with eight other unfortunates, two of whom were also British, but we weren't allowed to speak to each other.
"We begged for water but the [Department for Homeland Security] staff just sat there eating hamburgers. There was nowhere to wash or sleep and I observed verbal abuse by US immigration personnel to most of these people."
A spokesman for the US Embassy in London said it had no details on Mr Pattison's case.
The Foreign Office said it was "not in a position to intervene in the immigration process" of the United States.
Interpol, the international police organisation, said it could not confirm whether a notice had been issued against Mr Pattison.
However, for an Interpol notice to be issued, a person has to be charged with an offence in court in the country in question and the legal veracity of the case agreed by Interpol lawyers.
A spokesman for the Qatar Embassy said it was concerned by Mr Pattison's case as it had no knowledge that he was being sought.
External links
JFK Airport
US Embassy, London
Qatar Embassy, London
Foreign Office
May 1st 2004, 7:21 am
#2
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I find this hard to believe. There must have been something besides debt for immigration officials to put him in chains. Debtor imprisonment is a violation of the US constitution. I'm not sure if being a British citizen would make him exempt from this law, but that doesn't sound right. He begged for water and was denied? Something smells fishy here.
May 1st 2004, 4:12 pm
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SAN FRANCISCO
Visitor gets $175,000 from INS in settlement
Friday, December 20, 2002
A Nicaraguan woman who was jailed for two nights and subjected to ethnic slurs by an immigration inspector in San Francisco two years ago will receive a $175,000 settlement from the federal government, her attorneys said Wednesday. Rosa Zamora-Pineda, executive director of the Nicaraguan Sports Hall of Fame, traveled to San Francisco in September 2000 and was arrested at the airport, where an inspector accused her of having a fake visa, said attorney Robert Rubin of the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights. At one point the inspector noted that her tourist visa had been issued three years ago and shouted, "All Latinos who are able to get visas come running to the United States as often as they can and stay as long as they can. " INS spokeswoman Sharon Rummery declined comment.
Jabba, why are you so surprised? Nothing these arrogant idiots do, would surprise me.
Visitor gets $175,000 from INS in settlement
Friday, December 20, 2002
A Nicaraguan woman who was jailed for two nights and subjected to ethnic slurs by an immigration inspector in San Francisco two years ago will receive a $175,000 settlement from the federal government, her attorneys said Wednesday. Rosa Zamora-Pineda, executive director of the Nicaraguan Sports Hall of Fame, traveled to San Francisco in September 2000 and was arrested at the airport, where an inspector accused her of having a fake visa, said attorney Robert Rubin of the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights. At one point the inspector noted that her tourist visa had been issued three years ago and shouted, "All Latinos who are able to get visas come running to the United States as often as they can and stay as long as they can. " INS spokeswoman Sharon Rummery declined comment.
Jabba, why are you so surprised? Nothing these arrogant idiots do, would surprise me.
May 1st 2004, 10:08 pm
#4
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Still hard to believe. Slurs are one thing, but placing detainees in chains and denying them water is barbaric.
May 1st 2004, 11:47 pm
#5
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Oh my goodness there must be more to the story then this?
So many people must enter the US with debts behind them?
How would they know just by scanning the passport?
I think this story has alot more to tell?
So many people must enter the US with debts behind them?
How would they know just by scanning the passport?
I think this story has alot more to tell?
May 2nd 2004, 7:40 am
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There isn't.
If you got a warrant for your arrest from another country -- you CAN'T be allowed into the US. The us cannot be used as a haven for foreign criminals. Imagine if someone rapes someone in the US and runs to the UK, and the UK lets him in with a smile?
It's not the officer's job to play judge and decide which warrants are serious and which aren't. If it's on Interpol, it means it's more than just a jaywalking ticket and the US has international rules to abide by.
I'm sure it was a bullshit warrant made by elitist racist discriminatory bullheaded arrogant *******s with an axe to grind against him in Qatar, and i'm sure the officer knew it too. But nothing they can do.
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If you got a warrant for your arrest from another country -- you CAN'T be allowed into the US. The us cannot be used as a haven for foreign criminals. Imagine if someone rapes someone in the US and runs to the UK, and the UK lets him in with a smile?
It's not the officer's job to play judge and decide which warrants are serious and which aren't. If it's on Interpol, it means it's more than just a jaywalking ticket and the US has international rules to abide by.
I'm sure it was a bullshit warrant made by elitist racist discriminatory bullheaded arrogant *******s with an axe to grind against him in Qatar, and i'm sure the officer knew it too. But nothing they can do.
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May 2nd 2004, 10:27 am
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So all those ira bastards that were welcomed with open arms by the us when wanted in the UK were just an illusion then ?
May 2nd 2004, 4:48 pm
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Originally posted by supernav
There isn't.
If you got a warrant for your arrest from another country -- you CAN'T be allowed into the US. The us cannot be used as a haven for foreign criminals. Imagine if someone rapes someone in the US and runs to the UK, and the UK lets him in with a smile?
It's not the officer's job to play judge and decide which warrants are serious and which aren't. If it's on Interpol, it means it's more than just a jaywalking ticket and the US has international rules to abide by.
I'm sure it was a bullshit warrant made by elitist racist discriminatory bullheaded arrogant *******s with an axe to grind against him in Qatar, and i'm sure the officer knew it too. But nothing they can do.
-= nav =-
There isn't.
If you got a warrant for your arrest from another country -- you CAN'T be allowed into the US. The us cannot be used as a haven for foreign criminals. Imagine if someone rapes someone in the US and runs to the UK, and the UK lets him in with a smile?
It's not the officer's job to play judge and decide which warrants are serious and which aren't. If it's on Interpol, it means it's more than just a jaywalking ticket and the US has international rules to abide by.
I'm sure it was a bullshit warrant made by elitist racist discriminatory bullheaded arrogant *******s with an axe to grind against him in Qatar, and i'm sure the officer knew it too. But nothing they can do.
-= nav =-
Hey I am not knockiing it in the least
I totally agree with you 100%.
But in the same token why the hell do we have to go threw all these Police Checks from past residences if the POE would already see on your passport that you had done wrong.?
After all it can work out expensive as we all know especially if you have lived in a few places. Obtaining all those certificates.
Susanna
May 2nd 2004, 5:36 pm
#9
Howling at the Moon
Joined: Oct 2002
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Originally posted by Susanna
Hey I am not knockiing it in the least
I totally agree with you 100%.
But in the same token why the hell do we have to go threw all these Police Checks from past residences if the POE would already see on your passport that you had done wrong.?
After all it can work out expensive as we all know especially if you have lived in a few places. Obtaining all those certificates.
Susanna
Hey I am not knockiing it in the least
I totally agree with you 100%.
But in the same token why the hell do we have to go threw all these Police Checks from past residences if the POE would already see on your passport that you had done wrong.?
After all it can work out expensive as we all know especially if you have lived in a few places. Obtaining all those certificates.
Susanna
Much which may not show upon the POE check would be relevant when determining whether or not someone is eligible for an immigration benefit.
May 2nd 2004, 5:38 pm
#10
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Originally posted by doctor scrumpy
So all those ira bastards that were welcomed with open arms by the us when wanted in the UK were just an illusion then ?
So all those ira bastards that were welcomed with open arms by the us when wanted in the UK were just an illusion then ?
I guess they (the administration) blinked a lot, should probably seek a consulation with an opthalmologist......
May 2nd 2004, 5:47 pm
#11
British/Irish(ish) Duncs
Joined: Jan 2003
Location: Cambridge MA, via Mississippi and Belfast Northern Ireland.
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Originally posted by doctor scrumpy
So all those ira bastards that were welcomed with open arms by the us when wanted in the UK were just an illusion then ?
So all those ira bastards that were welcomed with open arms by the us when wanted in the UK were just an illusion then ?
May 2nd 2004, 6:13 pm
#12
Howling at the Moon
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Originally posted by Duncs
Nope they had to get special visas issued by the state department. I once travelled on a flight with a previously convicted loyalist terrorist, he had a special visa and it still took us 3 hours and a phone call to the State department to get through INS. I wouldnt call that open arms.
Nope they had to get special visas issued by the state department. I once travelled on a flight with a previously convicted loyalist terrorist, he had a special visa and it still took us 3 hours and a phone call to the State department to get through INS. I wouldnt call that open arms.
My previous response was somewhat light hearted.....
May 2nd 2004, 7:49 pm
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Aha terrorist scum get a form of their own K-1LL I guess ?
May 2nd 2004, 8:55 pm
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The INS tried to deport an IRA soldier here in so cal, who even served 8 years for manslaughter of 2 cops.
A judge let him go and he's now a LPR. But mexicans working in farms get deported.
Pretty pathetic and ridiculous huh?
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A judge let him go and he's now a LPR. But mexicans working in farms get deported.
Pretty pathetic and ridiculous huh?
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May 2nd 2004, 9:20 pm
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Originally posted by lairdside
Two different sets of benchmarks imho. That set for short term visitors is different (I imagine for practical reasons) than that set for those seeking more long term admission or permanent residency.
Much which may not show upon the POE check would be relevant when determining whether or not someone is eligible for an immigration benefit.
Two different sets of benchmarks imho. That set for short term visitors is different (I imagine for practical reasons) than that set for those seeking more long term admission or permanent residency.
Much which may not show upon the POE check would be relevant when determining whether or not someone is eligible for an immigration benefit.
Well thats nuts don't you think?
So If you have a felony charge etc and come in on a short term visa ie a tourist then thats alright because you are only going to be here a while so what the hell go rip someone of in 90days as long as you don't want to stay here???????? get my point.
So that meens anyone who may consider coming into the country to do bad might as well enter on a short term visa.
Some things I will never understand
Susanna