Thread: 150 on flight from Mexico allowed to skip customs, leave JFK airport

EXCLUSIVE: 150 on flight from Mexico allowed to skip customs, leave JFK airport

BY Brian Niemietz, Victoria Bekiempis
NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Monday, November 23, 2015, 4:00 AM


What airheads!
Airline and security officials at Kennedy Airport let 150 passengers arriving from an international flight leave the airport without going through customs, the Daily News has learned.
American Airlines Flight 1671 arrived at JFK from Cancun, Mexico, at 8:50 p.m. Friday.
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When the plane landed, passengers walked out of the airport without having their passports or bags checked by Customs and Border Protection, sources told The News.
Frank Franklin II 150 passengers arriving from an international flight left the John F. Kennedy airport without going through customs.


A source familiar with the matter said passengers disembarking the plane “just followed” a gate agent. The security snafu came just two days after ISIS released a video threatening New York City with a terrorist attack.
“Some passengers on Flight 1671 did not complete immigration and customs process upon arrival when they were inadvertently directed to the domestic terminal,” American Airlines said in a statement.
GUEST COLUMN: REASONS TO FEAR AIRPORT SECURITY
American Airlines contacted the passengers and directed them to return to JFK for customs processing. An official told The News on Sunday that 144 passengers had returned to the airport and gone through customs. The six that remain are all U.S. citizens, the official said.
Mary Altaffer/AP The American Airlines flight arrived at JFK from Cancun, Mexico.


American Airlines is working with Customs and Border Protection to ensure they “complete the process and to prevent this from happening in the future,” the company also said in the statement.
“None of us went through immigration or customs,” a passenger told The News, adding, “There were no signs for customs or anything. The only signs we saw were baggage claim and exit.”
The passenger complained Saturday that agents have “been harassing me with phone calls — they’re coming from high-up people at American Airlines, (Transportation Security Administration) and customs . . . . They’re very aggressive.” Another passenger also said that agents had been reaching out constantly.
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DelMundo, Anthony freelance NYDN/Anthony DelMundo American Airlines contacted the passengers and directed them to return to JFK for customs processing.


“They’re telling me that I am here illegally, that I’m trespassing!” the passenger said. “They said, ‘If you don’t come in Monday, we’re sending FBI agents to your house.’ ”
Both passengers said they had to come from Connecticut to JFK to clear things up.
A spokesman for the U.S. Customs and Border Protection, part of the Department of Homeland Security, said the agency is “aware of and looking into the incident and is working with our counterparts to resolve it.”
The TSA, which screens passengers before they fly, declined comment, while the Port Authority said that the clearing of arriving international travelers is a federal responsibility. The airlines, it said, direct travelers to security areas. With Graham Rayman

http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/...icle-1.2443629

JFK passport mistake only let 13 unchecked travelers in, not 150: border agency

BY VICTORIA BEKIEMPIS
NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Tuesday, November 24, 2015, 5:04 AM

150 on Flight From Mexico Skip Customs, Leave JFK Airport

NY Daily News



The agency charged with monitoring travelers entering the U.S. said Monday it inflated the number of international travelers mistakenly allowed to walk out of JFK without showing passports.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection initially said 150 passengers coming from Cancun on American Airlines Flight 1671 left JFK on Friday night without proper scrutiny.

But that number was overblown, spokesman Michael Friel clarified Monday.

The agency said only “13 of the 76 passengers inadvertently exited through a domestic gate” without going through customs.

GUEST COLUMN: REASONS TO FEAR AIRPORT SECURITY

Ten passengers have since been processed and the three who haven’t been are U.S. citizens, Friel said.

http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/...icle-1.2444928

There's an interesting legal question here. Do the people who did not pass through CIS inspection have to legally return to the airport to submit to inspection? Do they have to report anywhere for inspection? Does it make any difference whether or not they are U.S. citizens?

Orlando airport fliers bypass customs

Photo/Michael Probst)

Last Updated: Tuesday, November 24, 2015, 1:11

Orlando International Airport is expected to be the seventh-busiest airport in the country this week, with about 1.5 million people passing through the terminals.

Airport officials have stepped up security measures, but on Monday, 20 passengers on Norwegian Flight 7055 bypassed customs after the main terminal gate was left open.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection released the following statement Tuesday:

U.S. Customs and Border Protection identified an infraction involving the processing of a Norwegian Air flight from Copenhagen, Denmark, that arrived at Orlando International Airport.

Approximately 20 passengers inadvertently exited through a door to the domestic gate. CBP officers immediately responded to the incident and ensured all passengers and their luggage were processed through the federal inspection area before leaving the airport. CBP is investigating the incident with the airport authority and the airline and will implement measures to prevent similar occurrences in the future.

http://www.baynews9.com/content/news...l_warning.html