A flight student from Egypt is facing deportation from the United States after being investigated by federal agents for posting on his Facebook page that he was willing to serve a life sentence for killing Donald Trump and that the world would thank him.
While U.S. prosecutors have not charged 23-year-old Emadeldin Elsayed with a crime, immigration authorities arrested him last month at the Los Angeles-area flight school he attended and now are trying to deport him, attorney Hani Bushra said Wednesday.
Elsayed, who is being held in a jail, is devastated at seeing his dreams of becoming a pilot dashed over what Bushra acknowledged was a foolish social media post. An immigration court hearing will determine whether Elsayed will be deported.
“It seems like the government was not able to get a criminal charge to stick on him, so they used the immigration process to have him leave the country,” Bushra said. “The rhetoric is particularly high in this election, and I just feel he got caught up in the middle.”
Trump is leading the Republican presidential contenders and has used tough talk on immigration. He has vowed to build a wall along the entire Mexican border and has called for temporarily banning Muslims from entering the country.
U.S. Secret Service agents interviewed Elsayed in early February after he posted a photo of Trump on Facebook and wrote he was willing to serve a life sentence for killing the billionaire and the world would thank him, Bushra said. The agents returned eight days later and told him federal prosecutors had declined to charge him but said his visa to attend flight school had been revoked. He was arrested by immigration authorities.
Elsayed said he wrote the message because he was angered by Trump’s comments about Muslims. He said he immediately regretted it, and he never intended to harm anyone.
“It’s just a stupid post. You can find thousands of these every hour on Facebook and the media,” he told The Associated Press in a phone interview from jail. “I don’t know why would they think I am a threat to the national security of the United States just because of a stupid post.”
Elsayed said the agent who interviewed him mentioned last year’s shooting rampage by a Muslim husband-and-wife couple in San Bernardino and the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks, which were carried out by Muslims who had sought flight training in the United States.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement said in a statement that Elsayed was arrested because he violated “the terms of his admission to the United States.” The agency did not provide further details.
The State Department and Secret Service declined to discuss the case. A Trump campaign spokeswoman also declined to comment.
Bushra said immigration officials alleged in court filings that the flight school had tipped off federal officials to the Facebook post.
Alex Khatib, owner of Universal Air Academy, said he knew nothing of the case until federal agents showed up to interview and later detain Elsayed.
Elsayed is from Cairo, but he said he spent much of his life in Saudi Arabia, where his father worked as a civil engineer. He came to the United States for the first time last September to attend flight school with the hope of returning to Egypt and getting a job at an airline, he said.
He said he’d like to continue his studies in the United States if the government lets him stay. If not, he will seek a refund of some of the $65,000 he has spent on his education and use it to study elsewhere.
Khatib said federal officials asked him to terminate paperwork he had issued so Elsayed could study for his pilot’s license. He said he would take him back if the government allows.
The Associated Press contributed to this article.
All I can say is if you can’t stand the heat dont go in the kitchen.
Special treatment for the American hater Send the muslim back or better yet string him up in the public square you would not let an American citizen get away with something like this
He should be waterboarded then sent to Gitmo. He probably has more friends that think like him and I would also look for more plots against US citizens in his facebook account. I don’t know why they come if they hate us so much! We are just about the only country that helps EVERYONE out with money and yet they still want to hurt us. Shame on them!
ditto, the pos dont belong here anyway, its like oil and water together , we dont mix.. i cant stand the smelly animals, throw them pos out of here,,,TRUMP 2016 !!
UMMMM, the REAL question here is- why is an Egyptian going to FLIGHT SCHOOL in the U.S.??? Didn’t we learn anything from 9-11???
Really flight school in USA ? WTF….when will USA learn ? Go to flight school in your own country this sounds very very odd to me a Muslim ? Coming here to flight school oh gosh please let’s vote for trump to keep USA safe
1OO% agreed with you and most American.
We shouldn’t allow Muslims on temporary visas to go to Flight School.
We already had 9/11., isn’t that enough.
What nerves he has to even posted this he will kill TRUMP.
He should be immediately deported and absolutely NO MONEY REFUND FOR HIS SCHOOL.
VOTE FOR TRUMP, HE IS ONLY THE ONE, WHO WILL PROTECT US by CLOSING BORDERS.
ENOUGH IS ENOUGH.
Amen JK
A vote for Donald Trump is very like a vote for Joseph Stalin or Adolph Hitler. Trump makes grand promises of things he says he will do but couldn’t possibly do in a democracy. This republic has been blessed by having many very good presidents and some poor ones that we only thought would be good. There’s no reason to think that Donald Trump would be good for the U.S.A. His first two wives could testify that it’s not wise to believe everything Trump says. The many who have lost money in backing Trump’s bad investments could testify that it’s not wise to believe everything Trump says. The businesses which make money for Trump are sex clubs. Trump talks like a tramp. Perhaps his name is misspelled. His goals are surely not goals held by most citizens of this nation. He says what he thinks voters want to hear, and millions have heard his words and believed them. I want a patriot for President. I surely do NOT want to vote for Donald Trump.
Judging by your constant anti-Trump posts, Ray, one would get the impression that you are against this Candidate for the Presidency. Fair enough – you are entitled, and quite rightly, to your opinion, and you are not obliged to vote for him – or anyone else for that matter! BUT, being rude and impolite (as well as inaccurate) in your statements is not, shall I say, Kosher! Certainly it is NOT WISE to make slanderous statements about anybody!
You should at least be correct in your acid comments, i.e., Trump’s businesses do NOT make money for sex clubs…how unwise a statement is that? It is NOT WISE to make wild and misleading statements about someone’s financial businesses. It is NOT WISE to make idiotic statements saying voting for Mr. Trump is like voting for Stalin or Hitler. It is NOT WISE to make incorrect statements that his goals are not held by most citizens of this nation….have you not send the huge crowds at his rallies – compared to the other candidates … have you not seen or read of the results of the polls across the nation?
Should the results of the forcoming election place Mr. Trump in as the next President – a highly possible outcome – how WISE will your comments and so-calledpredictions be then?
Well said Rick . I think that Ray would have made that assumption more accurate if he meant to say Obama.
Hey Ray-
You are as entitled to voice your opinion about Trump as anyone, and no one will force you to vote for him.
But who else is on the list and even slightly viable if you care about America, especially it’s Constitution? Well, from the Corporate Controlled Main-Stream Media(aka CCMSM) list of “approved” choices, that is:
Hillary? Un-indicted criminal, NWO puppet.
Sanders? Avowed Socialist, perfectly happy to spend your money making everyone as equally miserable as possible, in service to a fictional entity called “the State.”
Cruz? Canadian citizen ’til 2014. Doesn’t meet “natural born” criteria.
Rubio? Both of his parents Cubans at the time of his birth. Ineligible. Lies constantly. Sweat-pig.
Carson? Quit.
Kasich? Hasn’t won enough delegates; will drop out soon.
Are you aware that there are literally a dozen, maybe more, alternative party candidates running, people whom CCMSM hopes you’ll never hear about? If not, you should google “US political parties” and inform yourself.
Personally, i strongly feel that Americans stand little chance of regaining control of their putative public Servants and Employees until they QUIT VOTING FOR EITHER A REPUBLICRAT or a DEMOLICAN, both of whom are wholly-owned subsidiaries of the Corporatocracy, which is comprised of extremely wealthy international corporations and the bankster-gangsters which are intimately tied with them AND the majority of world governments, all of whom have an interest in maintaining the Status Quo – which is why no matter WHO gets elected, nothing substantive EVER changes.
You do well to note Trump’s flaws – but of all the candidates extant who have the Seal of Approval from the Establishment, Trump is head and shoulders above the rest – of course, that’s somewhat akin to saying that The Donald has found a mound in the cesspool upon which to stand, too…but my biggest concern is that he’s become a true politician in the vein of Reagan(albeit less polite), in that he’ll say and promise just about anything to get elected(he’s a salesman, “Art of the Deal,” right?), but when actually IN office, won’t deliver squat.
Now, before any Reaganites get their panties in a pickle, perhaps you should recall that one of The Gipper’s main platform planks was “Government IS the problem, and i’ll reduce it!” Not only did he NOT reduce it, but the number of federal employees grew during his administration, and so did the national debt – which proves he lied.
So wake up, American Idiots, to how you’re being played – before the American Dream becomes any worse of a nightmare.
I have the same thought and get worried . When in doubt cut it out ???
Deport this Bastard forever!!! No true American wants this f….. here!!!! He wants to fly the plane soo he can fly into buildings,like Trump’s and political buildings in Washington!!! Watch this Dude!!!!! If you authorities let him stay here, then its the blame on you!!!
Think you Susan for taking the words out of my mouth.
ditto susan ! why do the politicians love these muslim pos anyway? like hillarys isis aide thats married to the pervet weiner .. shes a al jazzera loving ho
HE MAY BE A GOOD GUY, BUT DO YOU WANT TO TAKE A CHANCE? WHY NOT GO TO FLIGHT SCHOOL IN HIS OWN COUNTRY, OR A NEARBY ONE. WHY DOES HE EVEN WANT TO GO TO SCHOOL HERE? DOESNT HE REALIZE THAT AMERICANS ARE GUN SHY AFTER THE LAST TYME MUSLIMS WENT TO FLIGHT SCHOOL! SEND HIM HOME TO ALLAH!
He deserves the consequences of his big talk. He is holding Trump accountable for his words, so he must be accountable for his!
Put a bullet in him.
Get rid of that PUNK.
Deport him we don’t want another 9\11 the threat take it seriously before it’s too late it also happens in California..
Get him out of here!!!!
The student may not realize it, but threatening the life of a presidential candidate is a serious thing. Robert Kennedy was assassinated in 1968 when he was seeking the presidency. He was killed by a young Palestinian immigrant.
Elsayed may not like Donald Trump, but in America our elections are settled at the voting booth not by killing a candidate. If the government doesn’t feel his remarks rise to the level of a crime then we will abide by that decision, but he should be kicked out of the country. Anyone who is visiting our country is our guest. They need to abide by our rules. If that isn’t acceptable they should stay at home.
It’s been tossed around here and there that the Trump supporters will have a uprising and no matter what he’ll be president of this USA and then the change people want will be done. we’re sick and tired of liers,cheeters,back stabbing if H Clinton can do all the things like her Email and the death all around her and Bill.it’s a scary bunch of people
He is threating treason against the U.S. and should spend time in prison eating pork by products.
A refund? This is not the schools fault! Why should he expect a refund? Maybe 15 to 20 years at Gitmo would suffice./
This man may well need to be deported but I am seeing a larger problem. I am watching the rise of intolerance, both religious and racial. This is not the climate I want my children to live in. Quick judgments like “Put a bullet in him” are not much better than his post about Trump. Let us all act like brothers and try to put everything others do in the best possible light. After all, Trump has been rather harsh toward Muzlims as a group because a radical minority of them are dangerous. He was no doubt reacting at that. Yes, we do need to greatly improve our screening of Muslims entering our country, but we don’t need to marginalized them all. I am a white, conservative Christian male and sense that nobody is immune to being different. We have reservations about Muzlims because they don’t always act loving toward us. Are we the same toward them? We can’t let the hatred of others rub off on us or we are no better than they.
Bill-
In theory, i agree with you.
In reality, one of the tenets of Islam is to go to another country in numbers large enough to eventually get Sharia Law imposed. They’ll cry “religious persecution” until they’re in the majority, then they’ll impose religious tyranny. Just look at history, and how Islam has spread(when not imposed by the sword). Personally, i think that a condition of the immigration to this country should be that NO muslim be allowed to either practice or attempt to impose Sharia Law on anyone, ever – on pain of being immediately deported to a country that is fine with it, for Sharia is incompatible with our Constitution and laws. i remember reading about taxi drivers in Minneapolis, Minnesota, who were refusing to transport passengers with dogs, even seeing-eye dogs, and would refuse service to anyone drunk or carrying alcohol or allow anyone with pork or pork products into their cabs! Hey, pick another profession or go where that kind of intolerance is ok!
In the case of this student here on a visa, perhaps he decided to test “The Land of the Free” and it’s guarantees of free speech. Looks like America failed on that score. Looks like the proper authorities investigated, figured out he was just a kid with a short fuse, harmless, but tipped INS to revoke the visa and send him a-packin’. Life’s unfair sometimes. Maybe he’ll get a partial refund for his tuition, maybe not, but either way, he’ll learn that in the Real World, words have consequences or rewards. “Even a fool who keeps silent is considered wise,” says the Proverb – or in Ben Franklin’s more witty interpretation, ‘Better to keep silent and be thought a fool, than to speak and remove all doubt.’
But i certainly agree with the previous poster who argued that treating the Egyptian like a criminal and threatening to “put a bullet in him” or to torture him in Guantanamo “just because” is completely heinous. In his “Dissertations on First Principles of Government,” Thomas Paine said this: “An avidity to punish is always dangerous to liberty. It leads men to stretch, to misinterpret, and to misapply even the best of laws. He that would make his own liberty secure, must guard even his enemy from oppression; for if he violates this duty, he establishes a precedent that will reach to himself.”
A rather eloquent re-statement of “As ye would that men do unto you, do also unto them,” or “Have a care how you speak, for by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.”
Send him home to Egypt with NO refund!! We should not allow anyone from the Middle East to come here for flight training!!!! What did we learn from 9/11?? Nothing???
Dear Sirs,
What would happen if an American student would make a similar comment in Egypt. He would not live another day. He should consider himself lucky if all he’s getting is a deportation order. Kick him out of the US as soon as legally possible. This should send a message to all other Muslim students in the US that they have to respect the laws of their host country. If they don’t like the laws, just leave the US. We don’t need you. This whole issue goes back to the lack of backbone in the US Government. It is time to change this situation.
Islam, by law, is prohibited from US immigration. The immigration and Nationality Act passed June 27,1952, revised the laws relating to immigration, naturalization, and nationality for the United states. That act, which became Public Law 414, established both the law and the intent of Congress regarding the immigration of Aliens to the US and remains in effect today. Among the many issues it covers, one in particular, found in Chapter 2, Section 212, is the prohibition of entry to the US if the Alien belongs to an organization seeking to overthrow the government of the United States by “force, violence, or other unconstitutional means.” i.e.an illegal, who is foreign born, a Communist/Muslim trained belonging to a group planning on the takeover of the US.
(When a US President is NOT a natural born citizen of the USA, and there is a forgery birth certificate document, and THE US
Democratic National Committee illegally endorse him for President, there will be many arrests for Treason to American Voters.
Islamic immigration to the US would be prohibited under this law because the Koran, Sharia Law and the Hadith all require complete submission to Islam, which is antithetical to the US government, the Constitution, and to the Republic. Obama & who.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952. Candidate Trump is correct and it is a law in effect NOW.
The second paragraph caught my eye as he was at a flight school. What was he learning to fly ? Does it bring back memories about 9-11 as it was reported that the terrorist went to flight school too. As for 9-11, well that’s another topic.
Dont have anything dangerous..
Just hand me my skillet.ill make
Short work of that idiot.
Bye bye. Have a nice trip.