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The ‘suspicious’ holiday plan that led to two teens being deported from Hawaii

An aerial view of the Maui coast, the two German tourists say they were handcuffed and forced to wear prison uniforms
An aerial view of the Maui coast, the two German tourists say they were handcuffed and forced to wear prison uniforms (Getty Images)
  • Two German teenagers, Charlotte Pohl and Maria Lepère, were denied entry to the U.S. and deported from Hawaii despite having the required travel authorisation.
  • U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents deemed their trip "suspicious" due to their lack of pre-booked accommodation for their entire stay.
  • The teens were reportedly interrogated, subjected to body scans and strip searches, handcuffed, made to wear prison uniforms, and detained overnight in a holding cell.
  • They were eventually deported back to Germany via Tokyo, Qatar, and Frankfurt.
  • This incident follows a travel advisory update from Germany regarding stricter U.S. border control measures and an overall decline in European visitors to the U.S.
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