Mohamed al Kahtani may have been intended as the fifth hijacker on United Airlines Flight 93. However, he was refused entry by a suspicious immigration inspector at Florida's Orlando International Airport in August 2001.
On July 4, he was able to apply for and receive a two-year B-1/B-2 (tourist/business) visa in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. He was processed through the Visa Express program. There is no evidence that Kahtani was interviewed by authorities there.[1]
On August 4, Mohamed al Kahtani, the only operative other than Mihdhar who appears to have attempted a solo entry, arrived on August 4, 2001 at Orlando, Florida. He was also the only operative to be refused entry to the United States. Records indicate that Mohamed Atta was waiting for him at Orlando International while Kahtani was in secondary immigration inspection. Atta did not leave the Orlando airport until after it was clear that Kahtani was going back home.[1]
Both the primary and secondary inspectors remembered Kahtani well. Records indicate that Kahtani presented a Saudi passport with a two-year U.S. tourist visa. The primary inspector said that she recalled Kahtani for two reasons: he was the first Saudi she had ever encountered in her four years at Orlando that claimed to not speak English and his customs and arrival forms were not filled out. More subjectively, he made the inspector feel uneasy. Because she was unable to adequately communicate with Kahtani, she referred him to secondary inspection.186 The secondary inspector who refused to admit Kahtani into the United States testified before the 9/11 Commission on January 26, 2004.
The secondary inspector who recommended and gained approval from his supervisor to deny Kahtani entry developed his interviewing skills as a 26-year veteran of the U.S. Army, through limited INS training, and ten years of experience conducting primary and secondary inspections at Miami and Orlando airports. The inspector noted Kahtani’s hostility from the moment he called his name through the hour and a half spent interviewing him with the help of a Department of Justice translator. Kahtani was cleancut with a military build. He had no return ticket and became threatening when asked where he was going, how long he was going to stay, and who was meeting him. Although he had enough cash for a ticket home, he did not have any credit cards.
Kahtani’s answers to questions kept changing. Without a return ticket and limited funds, the secondary inspector sought to exclude him as an intending immigrant. The inspector’s real concern, however, was that Kahtani was up to no good. The inspector told the Commission in his written testimony:
| “ | My first question to the subject (through the interpreter) was why he was not in possession of a return airline ticket. The subject became visibly upset and in an arrogant and threatening manner, which included pointing his finger at my face, stated that he did not know where he was going when he departed the United States. What first came to mind at this point was that this subject was a “hit man.” When I was in the Recruiting Command, we received extensive training in questioning techniques. A “hit man” doesn’t know where he is going because if he is caught, that way he doesn’t have any information to bargain with. | ” |
This inspector had noted on prior occasions that Saudis coming through Orlando had a reputation for spending a lot of money at Disney World. Denying a Saudi entry was unusual, and inspectors told us they were generally concerned about the repercussions of taking such a step. However, after Kahtani refused to answer any questions under oath, the inspector decided to seek his supervisor’s approval to recommend that Kahtani be barred as an “expedited removal,” meaning that he could be deported without a hearing. After the inspector was questioned, approval to remove Kahtani was granted. The inspector convinced Kahtani to pay his own way home, saving paperwork and government funds.
Because an “adverse action” was taken against Kahtani, he was required to be digitally photographed and fingerprinted through the INS biometric system. (This action would help to quickly verify Kahtani’s identity when he was detained in Afghanistan after 9/11.) His passport was copied, although the inspector noted no fraudulent manipulations. In fact, Kahtani’s passport does contain a stamp listed as fraudulent and associated with al Qaeda. The inspector did not check Kahtani’s luggage.[1]