NYC Police Free Suspicious Men Due to Alleged Lack of INS Cooperation

NY POST | 5-30-02 | Murray Weiss

[My Favorite Headache]

NYC Police Free Suspicious Men Due to Alleged Lack of INS Cooperation

AP Thursday, May 30, 2002

By Murray Weiss

NEW YORK — Frustrated police in New York City had to free a suspicious group of illegal Middle Eastern aliens because the Immigration and Naturalization Service "didn't want to be bothered" on the Memorial Day weekend.

Not knowing whether the men they had nabbed were the hard-working immigrants they claimed to be or a terror gang plotting to wreak havoc, the local authorities had to let them walk in the end.

The mystery men — some with phony IDs, and all admitted illegal immigrants — could have been held if agents from the INS had bothered to show up.

"What's the point of stopping vans and risking your life when the one agency with power blows you off?" one angry lawman said. "And this is after Sept. 11."

"It's frightening and disheartening," said another. "The agency that handles immigration didn't want to come down" — although every other law-enforcement agency did. "They didn't even want to be bothered."

The INS didn't seem to have anybody on duty in New York City. The agency's contact number for the weekend rang at an office in Burlington, Vt., more than 300 miles away.

"The [expletive] INS has one phone working Memorial Day weekend and it's in Vermont?" said another incredulous law-enforcement official.

An INS spokesman said Wednesday, "Since Sept. 11, our primary focus has been on terrorist-related investigations and, contrary to belief, we are not in the business of detaining people without cause. These men posed no terrorist threat or, for that matter, any threat to the community."

But the cops had no reason to think that when they confronted the men Friday.

The case began about 4 p.m., when Bridges and Tunnels officers from New York's Metropolitan Transportation Authority police stopped a battered van from entering the Brooklyn-Battery Tunnel, which links lower Manhattan and Brooklyn, from the Manhattan side.

The red-and-white 1990 cargo van had four Middle Eastern men jammed in front — one more than is legal.

The commercial vehicle also bore only an address, 1006 Coney Island Ave., stenciled on its side, and not a business name, as required by city law.

Officer Chris Lasalle opened the rear padlocked door and found three more men inside, a police report said.

The seven men, most of whom were from Pakistan, produced a variety of paperwork, including a phony government card obtained in Times Square, a bogus passport, an identification card from Virginia, and some New York state nondriver IDs.

They were taken to the officers' headquarters on the Brooklyn side of the tunnel, where detectives from the New York City Police Department Intelligence Division, the Joint Terrorist Task Force, the MTA, an assistant Brooklyn district attorney and interpreters had responded.

The suspects said they worked for a construction company, Gill Waterproofing and Roofing in Brooklyn, to which the van was registered.

At 6 p.m., the INS was called, but no agents responded. By 10 p.m. the Brooklyn district attorney's office, without INS intervention, had to release the four men who had what appeared to be legitimate IDs.

At midnight, detectives again called, but were referred to a toll-free INS number that connected them with the Vermont office, where a concerned supervisor took information and said a Manhattan supervisor would be notified by morning.

At 1 p.m., INS supervisor Frank Ciringione called, promising to provide instruction later, sources said.

When asked if he wanted to talk to the prosecutor handling the case, he indicated he didn't — unless he had to.

"They had a horrible attitude," one cop said of the INS.

Three hours later, Ciringione called back and told ADA Jacqueline Kagan to free the other suspects, saying "INS would follow up at a future date in our own way."

Ciringione declined to speak yesterday.

[Bullish]

"INS would follow up at a future date in our own way."

That means you're scot-free.

[Freedom4US]

I guess it's not the destruction of America that bothers me so much, it's that it comes from within, that hurts, and on our dime, which really pisses me off. I've heard much the same thing happened to the Romans.

We did have a pretty good run of things, though -- couple hundred years, not too bad.

[ratdog]

Illegals have free reign while American citizens are (not so slowly anymore) losing our freedoms.

What is wrong with this picture?!?!

[ratdog]

Perhaps what they are lacking isbasic discipline.

Perhaps what they are lacking is Patriotism!

(I don't mean to sound rude. Just mad.)

[Marine Inspector]

Bush is the INS. He has them doing exactly what he wants.

[tallhappy]

What bunk.

They didn't "have to" release them.

This is nonsense.

[Texasforever]

Bush is the INS. He has them doing exactly what he wants.

When are you going to jump on the whistleblower gravy train?

[Marine Inspector]

Been there done that.

Been talking with Tancredos office for about two weeks now.

Unfortunately I don't have any real juicy info. But If I get some, It's coming out.

[Texasforever]

Been talking with Tancredos office for about two weeks now.

Save it for the book deal.

[upchuck]

An INS spokesman said Wednesday, "Since Sept. 11, our primary focus has been on terrorist-related investigations and, contrary to belief, we are not in the business of detaining people without cause. These men posed no terrorist threat or, for that matter, any threat to the community."

Say what? I believe the article says the men are "all admitted illegal immigrants." Well, if they're illegal immigrants then it's the INS's job to put them on a boat or a plane or a bus or a train, something. Just get them the HE!! outta my country.

[upchuck]

Just another thought. The article says they were picked up around 4pm. By now they should be nearing their home country of Pakistan.

[angkor]

Syed Professional Services
1006 Coney Island Avenue Brooklyn, NY 11230 USA
Tel: (718) 859-5392 Fax: (718) 859-2237

"Syed Professional Services is the leading name in Immigration Services since the last two decades. We are providing the best possible services especially to those who belong to the South Asian territory. Other than English we speak Urdu, Hindi, Punjabi and Arabic."

[Dec31,1999]

An outrage! Illegals out! We have plenty of nice immigrants from non-terrorist nations to go around.

[Wurlitzer]

,i>"Since we will do NOTHING to stop it, what conclusion can one make from all of this?"

We sat by while they gave preference to non-Europeans so now we are paying the price. Go ahead call me a racist but anybody that thinks all cultures are of equal value fails to see the obvious.

[AAABEST]

What you think?

You don't wanna know. It would get pulled anyway.

[FITZ]

Illegal Middle Easterners released by INS in New York even?

[FITZ]

Bush is the INS. He has them doing exactly what he wants.

I wouldn't go that far ---Bush may not have known enough before Sept 11 happened, but he is responsible for what happens after that, the Bush administration claims we are fighting a war on terrorism but the INS has not improved this many months into this war. Bush seems interested in opening the borders even more than they already were ----for those policies he will responsible for future attacks on Americans.

[Rita289]

INS was the right agency to call. FBI doesn't have any detention centers. Where would they put them? There was no crime committed, so state police would not want to be involved. This was an INS situation.

[Marine Inspector]

I don't blame Bush for 9/11, but he is directly responsible for the state of the INS.

He installed an open borders liberal to run the organization, and promoted an open borders Clintonite too the number 2 position.

He has done nothing to secure the borders and is trying to shove an amnesty program down the throats of the American people.