No longer a Conspiracy Theory

Michigan Attorneys Kurt and Lori Haskell who were on board the infamous Flight 253 from Amsterdam, have repeatedly claimed in media interviews since the attempted Christmas Day bombing, that a second suspect had been detained by Federal authorities.

A Federal spokesman initially denied the claim. And then repeated the denial days after to a number of reporters.

A Patriot's Journal provides some background:

In the days following this failed attack, the FBI has stated that only one person was arrested despite Mr. Haskell’s eyewitness account, which has been supported by others on the flight. After going public with his story, he has been visited by the FBI.

And asks:

Why are we being lied to? What does the government have to hide? What could possibly be so damaging that they would contradict the eyewitness account of everyone on the flight? Scarier than having enemies who want to kill us is having leaders who lie boldly to cover up their actions.

Randall Smith, spokesman for the Obama administration, has now reversed himself.

From the Detroit News:

Detroit -- A federal customs and border protection official reversed himself today, admitting a passenger from Northwest Flight 253 was placed in handcuffs, searched and released after a canine alerted officers to his carry-on luggage.

Ronald G. Smith, chief U.S. Customs and Border Protection officer in the Detroit area, sent an email to The Detroit News late Thursday apologizing that the information on the passenger -- which was reported to federal investigators by a pair of Taylor attorneys who were passengers on the flight -- was not made available earlier.

Federal officials had denied the details of the incident despite repeated accounts by attorneys Kurt and Lori Haskell of Taylor who say they saw a man get questioned by federal officials and be led away from the airport baggage area in handcuffs after a sniffer dog reacted to something in the man's carry-on luggage.

Among Haskell's eyewitness accounts, he described an older Indian man being led away at the Detroit Airport. This was a different Indian man than described as the "well-dressed man," at the Amsterdam airport, who allegedly assisted Nigerian Muslim Umar Farouk AbdulMutallab onto the flight. Haskell asserted that the "well-dressed Indian man," told a ticket counter agent, yes he doesn't have a passport, but he's from the Sudan, and "we do this all the time."

A second witness named "Bo" from Tennessee, corroborated much of the account.

Continuing:

"I just want them to look into our claims," Lori Haskell said. "Our story has been the same since Day One because we are telling the truth. This is the FBI's fourth story."

Christian libertarian Blogger Mark Epstein sums up the feeling of many on the Right:

One has to wonder if the FBI lied on its own or if the Obama administration instructed this member of the DHS “team” to do so. Although it’s perfectly acceptable to withhold information during an ongoing investigation, it is unacceptable to blatantly malign eye witness accounts that are repeatedly corroborated by passengers who witnessed the events under investigation.

He goes on to assert that Kurt Haskell:

is an “officer of the court” and, as such, his reputation for honesty is inextricably linked to his “bottom line” as an attorney. Moreover, now that the Haskells have been vindicated, the public has even less reason to trust Obama and his “Idiot in Chief,” Janet Napolitano.