Investigators make some mistakes in suspect search

By Times staff and wire reports

© St. Petersburg Times,
published September 17, 2001

In the course of the investigation into Tuesday's terrorist attack, federal authorities have identified some suspects only to later say they were no longer under suspicion.

For example, the New York Times reported Sunday that a case of mistaken identity led the FBI to search a home in Vero Beach, where a Saudi Arabian pilot lived. His name is similar to one used by one of the hijackers.

The Times reported that Abdul Rahman Alomari had returned to Saudi Arabia earlier this month. Authorities now are saying he is not a similarly named man, Abdulaziz Al Omari, who was listed as one of the 19 hijackers.

Authorities searched Al Omari's Vero Beach home and another rented by Adnam Bukhari, another pilot trainee. They also issued a police bulletin for Amer Kamfar, another friend of Al Omari's.

Bukhari was flown to Miami, questioned by authorities and released last week.

In a separate instance, two Carnival cruise ship passengers were released after being taken into custody Friday and questioned.

"They were questioned on Friday and they were released," said Greg Gagne, an INS spokesman in Washington. He declined to elaborate.

Coast Guard law enforcement officers went aboard Carnival's Fascination at 3:15 a.m. Friday with the ship about 20 miles south of Miami and helped Carnival's security staff detain the passengers.

They were removed from the ship about a half-hour after it docked at its usual terminal at 6:30 a.m.

The 2,050-passenger Fascination, one of the cruise line's megaships, was returning from a four-day trip to Cozumel, Mexico, and Key West.

Passengers said they saw law enforcement officials tearing apart one of the rooms early Friday morning.

http://web.archive.org/web/20020112103220/www.sptimes.com/News/091701/Worldandnation/Investigators_make_so.shtml