DWS on scene as an independent witness.
Via Courier Journal:
A month after he was held by immigration officials and questioned about his Muslim faith at a Florida airport, Muhammad Ali Jr. was stopped and questioned Friday at Reagan National airport in Washington, D.C., at the ticket counter and again at the security checkpoint.
The incident was first reported in a tweet sent Friday afternoon from Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz’s account: “On way home on DOMESTIC FLIGHT Muhammad Ali Jr. detained AGAIN by @DHSgov. Religiously profiling son of ‘The Greatest’ will not make us safe.” The tweet included a photo of Wasserman Schultz and Ali Jr. on a plane.
The TSA said it did not detain Ali Jr., but only stopped him to verify his identity. In an email to the Courier-Journal, a TSA spokesman wrote, “The TSA does not have the authority to detain passengers, and that did not happen.”
According to the TSA, Ali Jr. arrived at the check-in counter at Reagan National, at which time “a call was made to confirm Mr. Ali’s identity with TSA officials.” After 11 minutes, he was eventually cleared and sent to the security checkpoint. At the checkpoint, Ali Jr.’s “large jewelry” set off the scanner and he was patted down by agents. After a seven-minute screening he was cleared to catch his flight.[…]
In an email exchange with the Courier-Journal, a TSA spokesman bristled at the suggestion Ali Jr. was detained, writing, “In the security world detain means to take into custody. … We don’t do that. Law enforcement does.” The spokesman would not say why TSA questioned Ali Jr. but said he was free to walk out of the airport had he decided not to fly.
A spokesman for the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority told the Courier-Journal that Ali Jr. was not arrested and that airport police were not contacted.
Reached by phone Friday, Department of Homeland Security spokesman David Lapan told the Courier-Journal that Ali Jr. arrived around noon to check in for his 1 p.m. JetBlue flight to Fort Lauderdale. Ali Jr. was one of the first travelers to board the plane.
HT: Twitchy