August 06, 2004

Update on the illegal alien with the South African passport

An update on the woman with the South African passport and the suspected terrorism ties who was caught after having successfully entered the U.S. illegally:

WESLACO, Texas -- For the first time since the arrest of a woman carrying a South African passport on immigration charges in McAllen, the FBI confirms it is investigating her...

Previous coverage - including complaints about releasing Middle Eastern illegal aliens on their own recognizance - starts here.

Fearing al-Qaida may try to sneak operatives into the U.S. using South African passports, the Department of Homeland Security has put inspectors at major airports and seaports across the nation on high alert for suspicious travelers from that nation, which U.S. officials say has become a breeding ground for terrorists.

The order to "increase scrutiny" of South African travelers, contained in a closely held bulletin obtained by WorldNetDaily, comes on the heels of the arrest of four South Africans with alleged links to terrorism. [the lady mentioned above, plus one in Mexico and two in Pakistan --LW]...

Dated July 30 and marked "For Official Use Only," the bulletin was sent to field operations directors at four major international airports and two seaports on both coasts. WorldNetDaily has elected to withhold the names of the cities for security reasons...

Needless to say, Los Angeles has an international airport and a major seaport, but so do San Francisco, Oakland, San Diego, and Seattle.

UPDATE: "Grand jury to hear case of women caught with altered passport" tells us: "A grand jury in Houston is scheduled to hear her case on Aug. 16, said Michael Shelby, the United States attorney prosecuting the case." It also has several details on this case and a "she just came to work" defense from her relatives.

Posted to Immigration_terror at August 6, 2004 07:52 PM

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