Pakistani sailors caught in Waco

Four Pakistani crew members who slipped from their ship Sunday while it was docked in Louisiana were arrested Tuesday in a Waco motel.

The men were never considered dangerous, but the Immigration and Naturalization Service labeled them security risks because of their country of origin. None has a criminal history.

"The information to date was they were probably just coming here for jobs," said Rick Copeland, supervisory senior FBI agent in Austin. "Nothing at this point ties them to terrorism."

The sailors will be interviewed at length and, absent any ties to terrorism, will be processed as illegal immigrants, Copeland said.

In custody are Amad Khan, born in 1976; M. Ilyas Khan, born in 1968; Waheed Khan, born in 1977; and Ali Shah, born in 1980. A fifth person, as yet unnamed, has been charged with lying to the FBI in connection with the investigation of the other four.

The sailors jumped ship early Sunday morning while the Little Lady P was docked in Destrehan, La. They slipped past four security guards who had been hired to prevent unauthorized foreign sailors from going ashore.

Border Patrol agents and other law enforcement officers began looking for the group along Interstate 10 after they tried to persuade a Destrehan taxi driver to drive them to Houston.

"As long as there have been sailors, they've been jumping ship," said INS spokesman Bill Strassberger in Washington. "But in today's world, we take it seriously."

The men were never considered dangerous, but the Immigration and Naturalization Service labeled them security risks because of their country of origin. None has a criminal history.

"The information to date was they were probably just coming here for jobs," said Rick Copeland, supervisory senior FBI agent in Austin. "Nothing at this point ties them to terrorism."

GW's ranch is nearby and he usually flies into Waco to get there. It seems more than a little strange to me that these illegal "immigrants" would knowingly defy an order to stay aboard ship, then strike out half way across Texas to get a job in Waco, of all places. They could just have just as easily disappeared in Houston and had much more success finding work there. Hopefully, the FBI is keeping the lid on this one to learn more and not being PC, but I'm not holding my breath.

http://www.wacotrib.com/auto/feed/news/2002/07/16/1026878256.01415.3448.4731.html

update from the Waco Tribune-Herald

Four Pakistanis arrested in Waco for entering country illegally
By MIKE ANDERSON Tribune-Herald staff writer
As local and federal agents beat the bushes for two days looking for four Pakistani nationals who jumped ship in Louisiana and entered the country illegally, the men were apparently holed up in a Waco motel room.

FBI agents and Waco police arrested the fourabout 1:30 p.m. Tuesday in two rooms at the Sandman Motel at 3820 Franklin Ave.

Investigators are trying to determine what drew the men to Central Texas.

The four, identified as Ali Shan, 22, Amad Khan, 26, M. Ilyas Khan, 33, and Waheed Khan, 24, walked off the Maltese-flagged freighter the "Little Lady P" Sunday morning and took a cab to Waco, where they were met by a man police described as their uncle, said Rick Copeland, a senior agent with the FBI in Austin.

Officers also arrested a 46-year-old Waco man at another location Tuesday on charges of lying to federal agents looking for the Pakistanis. Copeland said the man was likely the uncle the four had met on arrival in Waco. He remained at the McLennan County Jail Tuesday awaiting arraignment, Copeland said. It is Tribune-Herald policy not to print the names of those arrested until they have been arraigned.

Linda Reed, a Sandman Motel manager, said the four men checked in Sunday night and little more was heard from them until FBI agents came calling Tuesday morning.

"They showed me pictures and I recognized two of them from rooms 8 and 9," she said. "I went out and told people to stay away from that side of the building while they were arresting them.

"We thought they were from Mexico. They didn't speak very much English. They were quiet. When the housekeeper went to their rooms they would not let her in."

The men were taken to the McLennan County Jail while Waco investigators searched their rooms. Police would not comment on what, if anything, the search turned up. Copeland said officers found the men by using "good detective work," but he would not comment further, other that to say the discovery was not based on a tip to police.

While it is not clear why the men came to Waco, the fact that President Bush has a ranch in nearby Crawford did concern some officials. Although Bush was not at the ranch at the time, he is expected to visit in August.

McLennan County Sheriff Larry Lynch, whose deputies also took part in the investigation, said he kept in contact with the U.S. Secret Service throughout the search.

Mark Lowery, assistant agent in charge of the U.S. Secret Service's Dallas District, said the fact that the men were from Pakistan raised concern in his agency.

"We don't have enough information right now to determine what they were doing there," he said. "But we take every potential threat very seriously. We have to."

Copeland agreed.

"You can't neglect any possible threat," he said. "Safety at the ranch is always a concern that's present for us. The ranch is that elephant in your living room that you just can't ignore."

Officials pointed out the four have only been charged with entering the country illegally.

The four remained in the McLennan County Jail late Tuesday, awaiting transfer to San Antonio by officers with the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service, said Carl Rusnok, a spokesman with the INS Dallas regional office. Once they reach San Antonio, they will be questioned by FBI investigators, he said. After that they will be given a notice to appear before a federal judge.

"What happens after that depends on what the investigation turns up," Rusnok said. "They could be deported. They could request asylum. In the meanwhile, since they were ship jumpers it's likely they will remain in custody while their case is decided."

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