Posted on 04/22/2025 5:02:57 PM PDT by Jyotishi
Two teenage girls from Germany were detained, arrested, and deported at an airport in Hawaii after immigration officials said it was suspicious they had not booked a hotel room.
Backpackers Charlotte Pohl, 19, and Maria Lepere, 18, arrived in Honolulu from Auckland while undergoing a round-the-world trip. The duo planned to spend five weeks in Hawaii before moving onto California and Costa Rica for the next legs of their journey.
But despite having ESTA travel authorization, immigration officials accused them of attempting to enter the U.S. to work illegally, and they were placed in handcuffs and taken to a nearby detention center they later learned was a deportation facility.
Upon arrival, they were subjected to full-body scans, strip searches and forced to wear green prison jumpsuits, German outlet Ostee Zeitung reports. They were then placed in a holding facility with serious criminals, including an alleged murderer who had been locked up for 18 years, and were forced to spend the night in a freezing cold double cell.
“It was all like a fever dream,” Maria told the German outlet. “It was a shock; we didn’t expect it. We had already noticed a little bit about what was going on in the U.S. But at the time, we didn’t think it was happening to Germans. That was perhaps very naive. We felt so small and powerless.”
After a sleepless night in the freezing cell, the girls were woken early and escorted back to the airport in handcuffs. Upon arrival, they were forced to board a Hawaiian Airlines flight to Tokyo and were told they would receive their passports back once they arrived in Japan.
Included in their travel documents were interrogation transcripts signed by the girls, which “contained sentences we didn’t actually say,” said Charlotte after the ordeal. “They twisted it to make it seem as if we admitted that we wanted to work illegally in the US.”
Upon arriving in Tokyo, the girls were shipped home on a flight via Qatar, which they say helped them come to terms with the ordeal. Both of them say they have processed the incident well, but are upset their backpacking journey has been marred by such a black mark by U.S. authorities. “I sometimes think about how wonderful the time in Hawaii would have been and what we would have experienced there,” said Charlotte.
The ESTA (Electronic System for Travel Authorization) allows citizens from certain countries to travel to the U.S. for short stays without requiring a visa.
But recent changes mean that ESTA authorization or a U.S. visa is not sufficient enough to automatically allow the holder to enter the USA, and that the final decision rests with immigration officials and border authorities.
The Daily Beast has reached out to Immigration and Customs Enforcement for comment.
seems weird
were all the hawaiian judges at the beach?
Two teenage girls from Germany were detained, arrested, and deported at an airport in Hawaii after immigration officials said it was suspicious they had not booked a hotel room.
Taint full truth until Paul Harvey chimes in.
Jails should be fun, inviting, and safe. A place that is welcoming and comfortable.
I wonder what kind of “work” the young ladies were suspected of planning to perform?
Eighteen and nineteen, so they’re “teenage girls”. Technically true, but the age of majority is 18 in Germany. I guess they wouldn’t get as much sympathy if the story referred to them as adult women.
This is likely a result of what other euro kids do - they travel and stay in private homes in exchange for basic chores like pet sitting, etc.. No money changes hands.
Nevertheless, this is considered "work" and requires a work permit.
So, not booking a hotel means, they are likely doing this as they are apparently not staying with a friend or relative.
Being Hawaii, they probably could've gotten away w/saying they were planning on sleeping on the beach w/the other homeless there.
Call me dubious on that claim. The low in Hawiii the past two weeks has been in the 70’s. Maybe the AC was too much for them?
i am guessing you have never backpacked in your life.
CBP ducked up again
Sounds like propaganda.
WHAT “”FREEZING CELL”” IN HAWAII????
“...were forced to spend the night in a freezing cold double cell.”
I trust them more than the governmnt.
These are not what we think of as “teen girls”-at 18 and 19, these are young adult women, both here and in their native Germany. I think it requires a work permit to have even a temp job in the USA unless you live here...
This story is BS, guaranteed.
I’ve noticed that the National Parks are FAR LESS BUSY this year.
“Somehow I think there is more to the story than what two teenage girls say.”
Perhaps the fact that they only had $75 between them and no credit cards raised a bit of suspicion*
*no idea if it’s true, but that’s what would typically get one rejected from entry here if it’s going to be a long-term stay.
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