Palestinian man suspected of links to terrorist group indicted for visa fraud

A Palestinian man was indicted Tuesday in Boston federal court for lying to U.S. Customs and Border patrol officers about his role in violent protests on the the Gaza-Israel border in order to enter the United States, officials said.

Waad Alzerei, 19 arrived at Boston Logan International Airport on Wednesday Feb. 27 on a flight from Cairo, Egypt, the U.S. attorney’s office for Massachusetts said in a statement.

While two border patrol officers interviewed him to determine whether he would be able to enter the country, Alzerei identified himself as a Palestinian citizen and presented a non-expired tourist visa. He told the officers his leg was amputated from the knee up after he was shot by a stray bullet from the Israeli Defense Force while he was picking olives near the Gaza-Israel border on Oct. 23, 2015, prosecutors said.

He said there were no protests going on at the time, and that he had never participated in any protests or demonstrations, prosecutors said.

Source: Boston Globe