Cape Town - What was meant to be a dream holiday visiting his sister in the US, turned into a nightmare for a Cape Town man, who was detained for more than 24 hours, forced to sleep inside a cell, and denied his right to communicate with family or the South African Embassy.
Bjorn Taylor, 37, a qualified accountant from Ravensmead, had never been abroad before and travelled 15 hours to Washington Dulles International Airport to visit his sister, Ophelia Taylor-Mckenzie, her husband, Patrio Mckenzie and their two children.
Taylor departed on July 31 and intended to stay for three months with his family.
He had applied for a tourist visa with the surety that his sister and her husband would be financially responsible for his stay as he was unemployed.
But in the words of Patrio: “Being broke does not make you a criminal.”
The family has since lodged a complaint and report with the South African Consulate-General in Los Angeles, Customs and Border Protection, and the airline.
Taylor told the Cape Argus the minute he stepped into Customs at the airport, he was profiled and treated like a criminal.
He was due to take another flight from Washinton to Denver, Colorado, where his sister and husband live.
Taylor had 40 dollars in his possession and did not have a credit card or bank account.
“I arrived just after 5.30am,” he said.
“At the first station of customs, I was asked for the reason for my stay and how much money I had and if I owned a bank card or credit card, to which I said I didn’t and that I was visiting my sister who lives here with her husband and their two children.
“During the second station, I was repeatedly asked by the customs officer why I was coming into the country and what type of work my sister and her husband were doing, which was in the financial sector.
“They already made up their minds that I was coming over to work, which I said was incorrect. I came to visit as it was declared on the Visa DS 160 form by my sister that they would be financially responsible for me.”
Next, Taylor said his passport and cellphone were removed from his person and he was detained in a room for 17 hours and later in a cell for nearly 10 hours, without the option to call his family or the embassy.
His luggage was also searched for suspicious materials or objects.
After a few hours, Taylor said he was not offered anything to eat or drink, and only later received a meal containing beans.
He was informed that he would have to take a connecting flight via New Jersey back to South Africa, and had to be handcuffed while walking through the airport.
“They handcuffed me and said I am a criminal?” he said.
“I asked if they could cover the cuffs with one piece of clothing but they refused.
“They took me to the runway and the flight was delayed.
“I was then taken back to the same room where I had to wait for hours and was later told the flight was cancelled and by then it was already 9pm.
“They only brought me some Pringles chips and a chocolate muesli bar and some cheddar biscuits.”
Taylor began falling asleep, having sat for 17 hours and was moved to a cell where he could sleep, though uncomfortable and stressed out.
The next day at noon, he was given cereal and told his flight was at 4pm, but delayed again.
By this time, Taylor was cut off from all communication with his family and yet again handcuffed and later placed on a direct flight to South Africa.
He landed in Cape Town on Friday. “I felt like they were profiling me and discriminating against me the whole time that I sat there. There was not one white person in that room, and in that space, we only saw Ethiopians or Chinese etc,” he added.
Patrio and Ophelia said they made more than 30 calls to the airline asking for information about Taylor’s well-being and received hostile attitudes and claims that he had been in possession of an invalid or fake visa or that he had suspicious material with him.
“This was discrimination and his civil rights were impacted,” said Patrio.
“We are filing a lawsuit for discrimination and his civil rights being violated and there were four customs officers involved.”
Ophelia said her brother was denied the right to make any phone calls to family or the Embassy. Customs officers claimed they were third-party individuals and that he had signed away his rights.
“I told them repeatedly that he was going to visit us and had a tourist visa.”
A letter between the South African Consulate General and the Chief Customs and Border Protection was shared with the Cape Argus.
A United States Embassy Representative told the Cape Argus yesterday, they could not comment on Taylor’s case.
“Thank you for reaching out with your questions regarding the protocols followed when an individual is detained at US entry points,” they said.
“Please note that as a matter of policy, we do not comment on individual cases to respect the privacy and confidentiality of all parties involved.”
Department of International Relations and Cooperation spokespersons, Clayson Monyela and Lunga Ngqengelele, did not respond to queries by deadline last night.