Detained on Suspicion of Human Trafficking at SAT Airport
#31
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Except it ignores the pertinent part of the OP.
"He then asked me what phone I had and if he could see it. I told him it was an iPhone 6 & no, he couldn't see it. I don't give my phones to strangers, let alone cops. If he had the right to see it without my permission, he wouldn't have asked for permission."
"He then asked me what phone I had and if he could see it. I told him it was an iPhone 6 & no, he couldn't see it. I don't give my phones to strangers, let alone cops. If he had the right to see it without my permission, he wouldn't have asked for permission."
#32
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#33
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And given they appear to have let OP go without charges or anything, that's all they did.
#34
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In the real world not handing over the potential key piece of evidence in an investigation makes you look suspicious. If I have received a complaint about someone having illicit material on their phone and I ask if I can have a look at it and they go 'nope'..well while that does not prove their guilt, it certainly makes me wanna take a closer look.
#35
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In the real world not handing over the potential key piece of evidence in an investigation makes you look suspicious. If I have received a complaint about someone having illicit material on their phone and I ask if I can have a look at it and they go 'nope'..well while that does not prove their guilt, it certainly makes me wanna take a closer look.
And given they appear to have let OP go without charges or anything, that's all they did.
And given they appear to have let OP go without charges or anything, that's all they did.
If someone reports seeing a pax swallowing something suspicious, should that sufficient to detain that pax for xrays and fecal matter probes to ensure that the pax did not, in fact, swallow suspicious contraband?
Is that also your idea of an acceptable 'closer look', particularly if the pax ultimately is not charged with anything because he was, in fact, falsely accused?
It is virtually impossible to prove a negative when you are dealing with a person or system that starts with the basic assumption that you are guilty of something and the onus is on you to do whatever is necessary to prove that you are not guilty of whatever they think you are.
#36
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If authorities suspect you've got a bag of cocaine in your stomach or up your a**e, then they will take measures to find out if you do.
If authorities *don't* follow up on complaints or suspicions and something happens, then they get to feel the brunt of public outrage.
"Innocent until proven guilty" does not mean LEOs can't investigate complaints. An investigation in itself is a measure designed to find out what really is the case. That might entail inconvenience for the people involved but as long as the outcome of the investigation is fair, it's not a bad thing. We aren't talking about an innocent man sent to prison here.
If authorities *don't* follow up on complaints or suspicions and something happens, then they get to feel the brunt of public outrage.
"Innocent until proven guilty" does not mean LEOs can't investigate complaints. An investigation in itself is a measure designed to find out what really is the case. That might entail inconvenience for the people involved but as long as the outcome of the investigation is fair, it's not a bad thing. We aren't talking about an innocent man sent to prison here.
#37
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My guess is the complaining pax thought the images were of underage girls and said something, which turned into this. Sounds like things worked as they are "supposed to." Unfortunately, this is the process.
Human trafficking and child porn are very interconnected financially, AND many sex slaves are indeed from SE Asia. Sometimes the child's own family sells them into such slavery.
The OP's situation isn't that different from what sometimes happens to FT'ers who participate in Manufactured Spending. There's nothing wrong or illegal with MS, BUT it appears very similar to money laundering to LEOs.
Human trafficking and child porn are very interconnected financially, AND many sex slaves are indeed from SE Asia. Sometimes the child's own family sells them into such slavery.
The OP's situation isn't that different from what sometimes happens to FT'ers who participate in Manufactured Spending. There's nothing wrong or illegal with MS, BUT it appears very similar to money laundering to LEOs.
#38
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In the real world not handing over the potential key piece of evidence in an investigation makes you look suspicious. If I have received a complaint about someone having illicit material on their phone and I ask if I can have a look at it and they go 'nope'..well while that does not prove their guilt, it certainly makes me wanna take a closer look.
And given they appear to have let OP go without charges or anything, that's all they did.
And given they appear to have let OP go without charges or anything, that's all they did.
#39
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In the real world not handing over the potential key piece of evidence in an investigation makes you look suspicious. If I have received a complaint about someone having illicit material on their phone and I ask if I can have a look at it and they go 'nope'..well while that does not prove their guilt, it certainly makes me wanna take a closer look.
And given they appear to have let OP go without charges or anything, that's all they did.
And given they appear to have let OP go without charges or anything, that's all they did.
If I'm passing through immigration, I'd probably hand over the phone. Although for my international trips in the Trump era, I'll probably hard-reset before each trip. (Not really a big deal with an Android phone.) Yes, I realize forensics experts can still extract data from a phone even after a reset, but a simply snoopy agent wanting to look at Facebook and the like would be thwarted.
#40
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In the real world not handing over the potential key piece of evidence in an investigation makes you look suspicious. If I have received a complaint about someone having illicit material on their phone and I ask if I can have a look at it and they go 'nope'..well while that does not prove their guilt, it certainly makes me wanna take a closer look.
And given they appear to have let OP go without charges or anything, that's all they did.
And given they appear to have let OP go without charges or anything, that's all they did.
#41
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As I'm walking back to my family with all the relief of someone who really needed to go to the bathroom, an African-American SAT Airport Police officer comes up to me and begins grilling me. "Who's that guy?" as he pointed at my stepdad. "Who's that?" as he pointed at my little sister. I explained who they were in a calm but absolutely internally bewildered manner. He then asked me what phone I had and if he could see it. I told him it was an iPhone 6 & no, he couldn't see it. I don't give my phones to strangers, let alone cops. If he had the right to see it without my permission, he wouldn't have asked for permission.
In the real world not handing over the potential key piece of evidence in an investigation makes you look suspicious. If I have received a complaint about someone having illicit material on their phone and I ask if I can have a look at it and they go 'nope'..well while that does not prove their guilt, it certainly makes me wanna take a closer look.
#42
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Someone mentioned CBP. This was a domestic flight, so CBP is not involved.
#43
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Except it ignores the pertinent part of the OP.
"He then asked me what phone I had and if he could see it. I told him it was an iPhone 6 & no, he couldn't see it. I don't give my phones to strangers, let alone cops. If he had the right to see it without my permission, he wouldn't have asked for permission."
"He then asked me what phone I had and if he could see it. I told him it was an iPhone 6 & no, he couldn't see it. I don't give my phones to strangers, let alone cops. If he had the right to see it without my permission, he wouldn't have asked for permission."
I'm saying the cops should start out being specific--in this case, a report of disturbing images in the photo roll. No need for the cops to even touch the phone, simply flip through the photos, showing the cops that there was nothing illegal.
#45
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2) Having kids doesn't suddenly make you non-sexual. A parent can still have normal sexual desires.
I see no reason to say anything unless the nudes appeared to be underage.