US Olympic swimmers pulled off plane by Brazil police

The Telegraph ^ | 8/17/2016 | David Lawler

[cornfedcowboy]

Ryan Lochte, the US gold medal-winning swimmer, who claimed to have been robbed at gunpoint in Rio de Janiero, has been ordered by a judge to remain in the country amid suggestions that they may have fabricated the incident. Federal police in Brazil stopped US team-mates Gunnar Bentz and Jack Conger from boarding a flight to the United States at Rio de Janeiro's international airport on Wednesday, O Globo newspaper reported on its website. The swimmers, who were with Lochte during the alleged robbery, were taken off the plane for questioning, the newspaper said. Lochte, 32, one of the most decorated swimmers in Olympic history, left the country shortly before a judge ordered the confiscation of his passport amid a growing mystery about the alleged attack. A Brazilian judge issued an order on Wednesday to prevent their team-mates Ryan Lochte and James Feigen from leaving Brazil while police investigate their account of how the four US swimmers were robbed at gunpoint on Sunday. Police said they had further questions for him about the robbery after finding "little evidence" that it had taken place.

[Truth29]

"The video clearly shows Lochte taking his wallet out while going through security."

Don't have any idea of what really happened, but how many times did the swimmers go through that security checkpoint on various days? I would suspect there is video of them every day they have been there so I would be cautious without forensic proof that the recording is from than night and not time stamp altered.

[Stingray51]

Great point about having no idea as to the date and time of that video but also it does not “clearly” show a wallet, not to my eyes.

[ThePatriotsFlag]

.....No right to take away their passports.

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Your passport is your permission to enter and leave a country. With that permission, you must abide by the host country's laws. If you break those laws, your "permission" is revoked...that is why a passport CAN be taken by a foreign country. They DO have the "right." (The USA has the same right).

[freedom1st]

This is so bullsh$t. The swimmers committed no crime. Brazil has no right to pull the swimmers off the plane, much less detain them and hold their passports. Where's the Secretary of State? He should be demanding their release immediately and be allowed to leave that hell hole of a country. All of the US Olympic athletes should refuse to compete in the remaining events until the swimmers are allowed to leave. If Trump were President this would have not happened to the US swimmers. As a US citizen this burns me up. The US government should intervene and get the swimmers out of Brazil instead of allowing the Brazil government to trample their rights.