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Illegal immigrant arrested, is checked for terror ties
BY MARISOL BELLO and CECIL ANGEL
FREE PRESS STAFF WRITERS

August 23, 2006

A 32-year-old illegal immigrant from Mauritania, an Islamic republic in north Africa, was detained by Detroit police Tuesday after officers found his car full of maps of the Midwest, license plates from different states and several driver's licenses.

As Detroit police investigate the man for possible links to criminal activity, federal authorities are investigating him for possible ties to terrorism. The FBI and the U.S. Department of Immigration, Customs and Enforcement are among the investigating agencies.

"We are all working together," ICE spokesman Greg Palmore said Tuesday.

He said immigration officials filed a detainer on the man, who will be transferred to their custody if Detroit police don't charge him.

The man, who authorities did not identify, was driving a gold Lincoln with Michigan license plates when Detroit police pulled him over at 3 a.m. after he ran a stop sign on Woodward south of West Chicago.

Detroit police spokesman James Tate said Tuesday that the man was evasive when questioned, which led police officers to search the vehicle, where they found the license plates, driver's licenses and other items.

Police also discovered the man has a warrant for his arrest from an unnamed southern state, which could allow them to hold him longer than 48 hours. If they didn't charge him in 48 hours, they would have to release him.

Tate said police did not believe that he had been living in Detroit. During the search, police did not recover any weapons from the car, Tate said.

As for the investigation, Tate said: "Right now we can't say exactly what we're looking at."

Contact CECIL ANGEL at 313-223-4531 or angel@freepress.com.

Copyright © 2006 Detroit Free Press Inc.