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January 02, 2010
Another Passenger on Flight 253 Says Christmas Bomber Had Help
Kurt Haskell, passenger on Flight 253 says Christmas bomber had help
Eyewitnesses: 2 arrested in Christmas flight terror
'How stupid do you think the American public is?'
Several passengers aboard the Christmas Day flight to Detroit where a Nigerian man attempted to blow up the airplane say a second passenger was arrested after the foiled terrorist attack – and they suggested other men may have played roles as well.
Kurt Haskell of Newport, Mich., and his wife, Lori, claim they were aboard Flight 253 as they returned from a safari in Uganda, seated only a few rows behind suspected attacker Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, a man who admitted to affiliation with the terrorist group al-Qaida. Haskell presented a boarding pass to Michigan Live to show that he had been a passenger on the plane.
Kurt and Lori Haskell, both U.S. attorneys with Haskell Law Firm in Taylor, Mich., told the newspaper that prior to the flight they were seated on the floor near the boarding gate in Amsterdam when Abdulmutallab approached the gate with another "Indian man" who was dressed in an expensive suit.
Kurt Haskell told Michigan Live the unidentified man in the suit approached ticket agents and asked them if Abdulmutallab could board without a passport, and he tried to convince them Abdulmutallab was a Sudanese refugee.
"The guy said, 'He's from Sudan and we do this all the time,'" Haskell told the newspaper.
But Dutch security officials claim Abdulmutallab was carrying a valid Nigerian passport and U.S. visa, according to CBS News.
Charlie Keepman of Oconomowoc, Wis., told the Detroit News that his daughter, Ricki, saw yet another man videotaping the flight from Amsterdam to Detroit, including the episode when Abdulmutallab purportedly attempted to set off explosive chemicals in his underwear.
Following the foiled terrorist attack, Haskell said passengers were corralled into a small, evacuated luggage claim area of an airport terminal. Then, he says, bomb-sniffing dogs were brought in.
"During this time period, all of the passengers had their carry-on bags with them," he wrote in a posting on MLive.com. "When the bomb sniffing dogs arrived, one dog found something in a carry-on bag of a 30-ish Indian man."
Haskell explained that the second "Indian" man was not the same well-dressed person who assisted Abdulmutallab in boarding the flight. He said this man wore orange clothing.
"The man in orange, who stood some 20ft away from me the entire time until he was taken away, was immediately taken away to be searched and interrogated in a nearby room," Haskell explained. "At this time, he was not handcuffed. When he emerged from the room, he was then handcuffed and taken away."
Immediately after the questioning, Haskell said an FBI agent approached the remaining passengers and, referring to the man in orange, said, "You all are being moved to another area because this area is not safe. I am sure many of you saw what just happened and are smart enough to read between the lines and figure it out."
In his interview with MLive.com, Haskell said the agent's statement made him and other passengers believe an explosive may have been detected in the man's luggage. A second passenger, Daniel Huisinga of Fairview, Tenn., who was returning from an internship in Kenya, confirmed the account.
Haskell said authorities marched the remaining passengers out of the baggage claim area and into a long hallway.
"This entire time period and until we left customs, no person that wasn't a law enforcement personnel or a passenger on our flight was allowed anywhere on our floor of the terminal (or possibly the entire terminal)," he wrote. "The FBI was so concerned during this time that we were not allowed to use the bathroom unless we went alone with an FBI agent. We were not allowed to eat or drink, or text or call anyone."
Haskell said ever since the landing the FBI has insisted only one man was arrested for the airliner attack.
"However, several of my fellow passengers have come over the past few days, backed up my claim, and put pressure on FBI/Customs to tell the truth," he wrote.
Huisinga told reporters he, too, saw a man taken away in handcuffs at the airport after a dog search.
Another passenger, Roey Rosenblith, told the Huffington Post officials arrested a man in a gray suit.
"The only thing that I recall happening is seeing an Indian guy off to the side, an older gentleman wearing a gray suit leaning against the wall. Suddenly there was a police officer next to him pulling his arms back and putting handcuffs on him," he said. "The man didn't struggle, the bags which seemed to be his were left there, and he and the police officer disappeared around the corner."
Just today, the Detroit News reported a U.S. Customs and Border Protection spokesman confirmed that officials had taken a second person into custody after the attempted bombing. But officials claim the handcuffed passenger was from a different flight, and the incident was not related.
Ron Smith, chief Customs and Border Protection officer in the Detroit office, told the newspaper, "There was a second person taken into custody, but it had nothing to do with Flight 253. They did see dogs, but again, it was a totally different incident."
But Haskell stands by his story, claiming officials are "playing the American public for a fool." He said their explanation would require the public to believe the following:
FBI and Customs officials allowed passengers from a separate flight to co-mingle with the passengers of Flight 253 during a critical investigation. Haskell insists that no one – aside from law enforcement and Flight 253 passengers – was allowed in the area while they were being detained.
Despite prohibiting passengers from drinking, eating, making calls and using the restrooms, FBI and Customs officials allowed people from other flights to "trample through the area and possibly contaminate evidence."
Haskell also added that no flights during that time allowed passengers to exit from the planes. The planes were held on the runway during the first hour of the detention period.
"You have to believe that the man that stood 20 feet from me since we entered customs came from a mysterious plane that never landed, let its passengers off the plane and let this man sneak into our passenger group despite having extremely tight security at this time," he added.
He said the public would be required to believe FBI and Customs officials were "hauling mysterious passengers from other flights through the area we were being held to possibly contaminate evidence and allow discussions with suspects on Flight 253 or to possibly allow the exchange of bombs, weapons or other devices between the mysterious passengers from other flights and those on flight 253."
"Seriously, Mr. Ron Smith, how stupid do you think the American public is?" he wrote.
Haskell said he believes a more plausible story is that law enforcement officials "realized that they screwed up and don't want to admit that they left Flight 253 passengers on a flight with a live bomb on the runway for 20 minutes" or that they "they left Flight 253 passengers in customs for one hour with a live bomb in a carry-on bag."
He also suggests "the man in orange points to a greater involvement than the lone wolf theory that they have been promoting."
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Wild Thing's comment.........
But wait , our "friend" Janet Napolitano said , "The System Worked."
Officially, the Feds have changed their story three times.
This man Haskell has not changed his story, not once. He sounds credible to me and our government is not credible. It warrants further investigation.
And considering that the woman in charge of Homeland Security is the same woman who represented Anita Hill in her scurrilous testimony against Clarence Thomas, we can't trust anything that comes from her office.
I love the truth, and sometimes it takes a bright, credible witness from among us. I would refuse to fly commercial until they tell us the truth about his witnessed events.
What about that other guy they took away in handcuffs?
What part of passport clearance did the terrorist NOT go through in Amsterdam?
Please show the world the security tape of the terrorist with his Al Qaeda handler at the gate in Amsterdam. Amsterdam admitted the videotape exists. SHOW IT. OUR LIVES depend on it.
The involvement of a swarthy, "sharply dressed" man with the jihadist in Amsterdam and a second one detained upon landing in Detroit (with luggage signaled by the bomb-sniffing dog) blows to hell the Administration's insistence that this is just the work of a single, generic "extremist." It makes the whole thing look more like a sophisticated, well-organized, well-funded act of Islamic terrorism and, therefore, a Big Deal failure on the part of those keeping America safe.
HERE is something else to think about. Drudge had this story about Haskell at his site then he removed. I wonder if this below had anything to do with it??? Just womdering................
Travel blogger to challenge TSA subpoena in court
Associated Press
12.31.09
WASHINGTON — An Internet travel writer who was leaked an airline security directive asked the Transportation Security Administration today to postpone enforcement of a subpoena so he could challenge it in federal court.
Chris Elliott said TSA agents showed up at his house, demanding that he reveal who leaked the security directive that followed a Christmas Day attack on a Detroit-bound airliner. The directive included security measures that quickly became apparent to many travelers.
The administrative subpoena — a demand for information issued without a judge's approval — will be challenged next week in federal court in Orlando, Fla., said Lucy Dalglish, executive director of the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press. Dalglish said she was acting as Elliott's spokesman on the issue.
TSA and its parent agency, the Department of Homeland Security, had no immediate comment today.
Another travel blogger who received a subpoena, Steve Frischling, said he met with two TSA special agents Dec. 29 at his Connecticut home for about three hours and again Dec. 30 when he was forced to hand over his laptop computer.
Frischling said the agents threatened to interfere with his contract to write a blog for KLM Royal Dutch Airlines if he didn't cooperate and provide the name of the person who leaked the memo.
Dalglish said she was not speaking for Frischling, but added there was nothing to challenge if he had already handed over his computer. She said she could not remember the last time an administrative subpoena had been served on a reporter in last decade.
"They should seriously reconsider this," Daglish said. "Millions of fliers know these rules are out there."
The TSA directive outlined new screening measures that went into effect the same day as the airliner incident at Detroit. It included many procedures that would be apparent to the traveling public, such as screening at boarding gates, patting down the upper legs and torso, physically inspecting all travelers' belongings, looking carefully at syringes with powders and liquids, requiring that passengers remain in their seats one hour before landing, and disabling all onboard communications systems, including what is provided by the airline.
It also listed people who would be exempted from these screening procedures, such as heads of state and their families.
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....Thank you Mark for sending this to me.
Mark
3rd Mar.Div. 1st Battalion 9th Marine Regiment
1/9 Marines aka The Walking Dead
VN 66-67
Posted by Wild Thing at January 2, 2010 01:47 AM
Comments
All this govt. secrecy and strange behavior is OK if it's primary intent is to prevent terrorists activities. However, I kinda think it is more like attempts to cover up govt. mistakes. Only the incompetance of the bomber and the actions of passengers stopped a successfull blowing up of Flight 253. Do you trust our government under obama?
Posted by: TomR at January 2, 2010 11:33 AM
:)
Posted by: Jack at January 2, 2010 03:48 PM
