Tough exit for illegal immigrant
Honduran man tried to go home but airport officers, citing paperwork problems, wouldn't let him board flight.
By Franco Ordoñez

Posted: Sunday, May. 31, 2009


After seven years of living in the country illegally, the 28-year-old from Honduras said he could no longer live in fear of being discriminated against or deported. He no longer felt welcome.

So his mother wired him $400 to buy a plane ticket. He packed his bag and on May 15 had his pastor drive him to Charlotte/Douglas International Airport.

After retrieving his boarding pass, he walked to security. He handed the agent his temporary passport. The agent asked him to step aside and wait.

After a roughly two-hour interview, he said officials ripped up his boarding pass and told him he would not be able to fly.

For all the talk of enforcing the nation's immigration laws, the country seems to be doing a better job keeping some illegal immigrants in the country than keeping them out.

“If so many people hate us in this country, why do they stop us when we try to leave?â€