U.S. Department of Justice
Federal Bureau of Investigation
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U.S. Department of Justice Federal Bureau of Investigation |
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| In Reply, Please Refer to Release No. |
219 South Dearborn Street Chicago, Illinois 60604 |
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March 24, 2003 Jordanian Air Marshal Located in Florida Thomas J. Kneir, Special Agent in Charge of the Chicago office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) announced today that a Jordanian Air Marshal who has been missing since Saturday evening, was located earlier today in Jacksonville, Florida. ALI AHMAD AL-OMARI, age 30, was scheduled to return to Jordan Saturday evening onboard a Royal Jordanian Airways (RJA) flight to Amman. AL-OMARI was one of four Jordanian military officials assigned to the flight as an Air Marshal. Several hours prior to the scheduled departure of the flight, AL-OMARI telephonically contacted RJA officials and indicated that he was not returning to Jordan. RJA officials notified the Mt. Prospect, Illinois Police Department, who in turn contacted the FBI and a nationwide manhunt was launched. Special Agents of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), conducting routine narcotics investigations, noticed an individual matching AL-OMARI's description on a Miami, Florida bound Amtrak train. AL-OMARI was detained early this afternoon by the DEA during a scheduled stop of the train in Jacksonville. He was subsequently turned over to FBI Special Agents for questioning. Although the investigation of Al-OMARI's disappearance is still underway, he has claimed to investigators that he was en route to Miami to visit friends and that he was going to seek asylum in the United States. The Department of Homeland Security's Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) bureau has been notified of AL-OMARI's intentions and will be taking custody of him, later today, in Jacksonville. As was indicated in a previous FBI release, there is no evidence that Al-OMARI was involved in any criminal or terrorist activities. EDITOR's NOTE: AL-OMARI's identity was originally and incorrectly listed as ALI ALIMORA. As indicated above, his true and correct name is believed to be ALI AHMAD AL-OMARI. |
