US Detains British Student 23 Hours, Denies Entry at Orlando Airport

1 articles · Updated · The Guardian · Aug 17

Laith Alani, a 20-year-old British law student, said US border officers held him nearly 24 hours at Orlando on 3 July before putting him on a flight back to the UK.
Nine hours of questioning and 14 hours in a holding cell followed CBP concerns over inconsistencies in his travel history; agency correspondence said he was inadmissible because he failed to overcome a presumption he intended to immigrate.
Alani, who held a 10-year B1/B2 visa after earlier being refused an Esta waiver, said officers searched his devices, pressed him about trips including Iraq and Tunisia, and made withdrawal of his entry application seem compulsory.
Anneliese Dodds has raised the case with the UK Foreign Office, while Muslim and Arab groups said similar detentions and device searches of British travelers to the US are becoming increasingly common.
CBP denied racial profiling, said staff followed strict protocols and blamed the custody length on limited flights, but the case adds to wider scrutiny after other foreign nationals were held in US immigration detention for days or weeks.