US seeks to force feed pilot it tricked, detained

[Nomen Nescio]

mv at cdc.gov (Major Variola ret) writes:

http://latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-000097083dec06.story?coll=la%2Dheadlines%2Dnation

> U.S. Seeks Force-Feeding Order for Fasting Detainee in Phoenix Courts:
> The unusual step involves a Middle Eastern pilot protesting his
> jailing in a dragnet. He faces identity fraud charges.
>
>
> By RICH CONNELL, TIMES STAFF WRITER
>
> Federal prosecutors in Phoenix are asking a judge to issue an unusual
> order to force-feed a hunger-striking Middle Eastern pilot arrested
> on charges stemming from the investigation of the Sept. 11 terrorism
> attacks.
>
> Malek Mohamed Seif, also known as Malek Mohamed Abdulah, is protesting
> what he contends is his improper detention as part of the global
> anti-terrorism dragnet.
>
> Taking only liquids, Seif has lost 30 pounds since his October arrest
> and is rapidly deteriorating, officials said. Seif, 36, believed to be
> a Djibouti national, has acknowledged a passing acquaintance with one
> of the suspected skyjackers.
>
> He also trained at the same Phoenix area flight school as an Algerian
> pilot suspected of helping prepare some of the hijackers, according to
> federal investigative records.
>
> But the only charges filed to date against Seif are for identity
> fraud. A federal judge recently stressed in a court order that no
> evidence has been presented linking him to terrorism.
>
> Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio, who is housing Seif for federal
> authorities, says he is getting worried about his high-profile inmate.
> "I don't want this guy to die in my jail," said the no-frills lawman
> who made headlines by housing prisoners in desert tents and making
> them wear pink shirts. Arpaio says he has been talking with Seif,
> trying to coax him to eat.
>
> As a compromise, Arpaio said, he removed pork from Seif's meals. But
> he has declined to fill his special requests for dates and ice water.
> "I said, 'We don't have room service.' " Seif's attorney, Thomas
> Hoidal, reported to a judge Monday that his client was in the jail
> infirmary and too weak to attend a hearing.
>
> Seif, who left the U.S. before the attacks, has complained that
> federal investigators duped him into returning to answer questions.
> After he landed in Phoenix on Oct. 25, he was arrested for allegedly
> making false statements on federal forms to obtain dual identities.
>
> "He doesn't understand, when he came back voluntarily, why he is being
> treated in this fashion," said Hoidal, who also is trying to persuade
> Seif to eat.
>
> Prosecutors expect to file additional bank and financial fraud charges
> against Seif and are worried he may be unfit to stand trial. They are
> seeking medical and psychiatric evaluations of Seif.
>
> One veteran U.S. law enforcement official in Phoenix said he knew
> of no other instance when federal prosecutors there sought a
> forced-feeding order.
>
> Sporadic hunger strikes have been reported among the more than 1,000
> detainees rounded up in the anti-terrorism crackdown. But Seif, who
> has dropped from about 180 to about 150 pounds, appears to have lasted
> the longest.
>
> It is not clear whether Seif intends to fight the forced feeding
> order, his attorney said. A hearing is scheduled for today. Arpaio
> doubts a judge's order will be effective, as long as Seif remains
> conscious. "If he's still coherent . . . you can't force the guy to
> eat if he says he doesn't want to."
>
> In another development Wednesday, a coalition of 16 civil liberties
> groups filed suit against the Justice Department, demanding
> information about those arrested and detained since the Sept. 11
> attacks. The groups said they were seeking such information as the
> names of the detainees, the charges against them and how long they
> have been held.
>
> Atty. Gen. John Ashcroft has argued that some of the information must
> be kept secret to aid in the investigation.
>
> Kate Martin of the Center for National Security Studies, a plaintiff
> in the case, said that instead of federal officials "simply announcing
> that they are respecting the Constitution, we need evidence that will
> show whether that is true."