A traveler from Saudian Arabia was reportedly arrested after arriving at Detroit Metropolitan Airport with a pressure cooker. On Saturday, Hussain Al Kwawahir, who flew from Saudi Arabia through Amsterdam, allegedly told authorities that he was in the U.S. to visit his nephew who attends the University of Toledo.
But The Detroit News also claims that he will be arraigned on Monday in federal court for purportedly lying to a Customs and Border Protection Agent about the pressure cooker and for allegedly using an altered passport.
When asked about the passport, which had a missing page, Al Kwawahir apparently told authorities that he did not know how the section was removed. As for the pressure cooker, when he was asked why it was in his baggage, he purportedly said that he brought it for his nephew, as the devices are not available for sale in the United States (however, they are both available and common here).
This image from a Federal Bureau of Investigation and Department of Homeland Security joint bulletin issued to law enforcement and obtained by The Associated Press, shows the remains of a black backpack that the FBI says contained one of the bombs that exploded during the Boston Marathon. Credit: AP
Later, though, the Detroit News reports that the suspect claimed his nephew had bought a pressure cooker in America, but that it was cheap or broken. The change to his story was reportedly curious to officials.
Pressure cookers were used in the Boston Marathon bombing last month, which has purportedly led to more caution if and when these devices are observed. This was at least the second alleged issue in the past few days concerning pressure cookers. On Sunday, the Daily Mail reported the following about a separate incident:
A Saudi student living in Michigan was questioned in his home by FBI agents after neighbours saw him carrying a pressure cooker and called the police.Talal al Rouki had been cooking a traditional Saudi Arabian rice dish called kabsah and was carrying it to a friend's house.
According to reports in a Saudi newspaper on Friday, the FBI are increasingly vigilant about 'pressure cooker' home-made bombs after the Boston bombers used one to make an explosive.
(H/T: The Detroit News)
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