New York, Aug 14: Two Pakistani men, who bought one-way tickets to New York with cash on different airlines, were arrested in Seattle for suspected illegal entry after their names appeared on a terrorism-related "no fly" list.
The men, who were not identified, bolted when suspicion was raised and the airlines called the police Saturday night. One of them even left his ticket on a counter at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport. Seattle is in Washington state which borders Canada.
Officials said both men carried Pakistani passports and one of them had a Canadian ID and New York driver's license.
The two men were arrested on suspicion of entering US from Canada illegally and handed over to FBI on Saturday. They are being detained on immigration violation charges as the authorities investigate.
Officials said they had planned to fly to the Kennedy International Airport in New York through different airlines.

The 'Seattle Times' newspaper reported that the men told investigators they paid to be smuggled across the border from Canada last month.

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Persons whose names appear on "no fly" list are considered a "threat" to civil aviation but officials did not say whether the men, aged 29 and 38, had terrorist links.

Airlines now routinely run security checks on persons with one-way tickets and those who buy tickets with cash. Hundreds of people whose names match with those on the list have been briefly detained at the airports for security check since September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.
Bureau Report