Does the US government use British authorities to detain and question
American citizens who don't want to talk to FBI terrorism investigators
without a lawyer present? A recent case suggests as much.Last week, Michael Migliore, a 23-year-old American convert to Islam, was nearing the end of a trans-Atlantic cruise from New York to Southampton, England. From there, Migliore hoped to continue on to Italy, where he has family and holds dual citizenship. Migliore would have flown, but when he tried to, he discovered that he seemed to be on the US government's no-fly list. He believes this was because he was a casual acquaintance of Mohamed Osman Mohamud, the accused "Christmas tree bomber." He had to take a cruise ship across the Atlantic instead of flying.
As the Cunard liner neared Southampton harbor, Migliore, who was eating breakfast, noticed a speedboat set out from shore. According to Migliore, British authorities boarded, removed him from the ship, and detained and questioned him under British anti-terrorism law for 8 to 10 hours. He was told he had no choice but to cooperate. They confiscated his cell phone, iPod touch, a flash drive, and a book of Arabic grammar before sending him on his way.