British grad banned from US for two year old text about cocaine

A British tourist claims she was banned from the US for 10 years after immigration officers found a two-year-old text about cocaine on her phone.

Drama grad Isabella Brazier-Jones was flying to Los Angeles in March with her best friend when she was subjected to a bag search and intense interrogation in a deportation centre.

Officers discovered a text sent in 2017 making reference to cocaine and asked Isabella if she had ever taken the drug. She told them she had, and was escorted back to the UK 31 hours after her arrival.

Isabella and best friend Olivia Cura met at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts in London, and planned to spent a month in LA, followed by a month in New York City.

They spent £3,500 on flights, rental cars, and accommodation.

However when they got to the US, immigration officers questioned whether she could afford the trip and looked at her bank accounts.

After several interrogations and searches, Isabella's phone was examined. The officers found a text talking about cocaine and asked her if she had taken it. When she admitted it, Isabella was escorted onto a deportation flight by armed officers.

Upon their arrival at LAX, the pair claim immigration officers were suspicious of the amount of time they planned to spend in the country.

Both were asked questions about their visit. Isabella says the officers didn't like the answers she gave.

"I felt very sweaty in the situation," she said.

Immigration officers doubted Isabella had money for the trip, so asked to see her bank statements. "They were asking how I was going to afford the trip and they didn’t like that I had rented out my flat," she said.

Isabella says she did her flat up and rented it out to help pay for the trip.

"I had just managed to pay off my mortgage and I showed them three different bank accounts.

"I had about £3,500 but they weren’t convinced that was enough money."

The 28-year-old also claims she was asked about her love life, saying: "They questioned me about why my boyfriend wasn’t with me and whether the relationship was going to last.

"They asked me if I was interested in finding someone in America."

Olivia was told she would be allowed to enter the US an hour later, but Isabella was not.

Isabella was held with four other women in a deportation centre, divided by men and women and lit by strip lighting.

She said: "As soon as you enter that room, you are not allowed anything – no food, no phone calls.

“If you have any queries you are told to shut up and sit down."

Airport staff took her to a back room, where Isabella was body searched, her belongings confiscated, and her phone examined.

Isabella claims to have undergone eight interrogations in a room with no windows, each lasting 30 to 60 minutes. She described the experience as "torture."

In the final interrogation, officers brought up texts found on her phone.

Isabella said: "They told me that there was a message on my phone referring to cocaine.

"You never see the messages or the emails that they say they are referring to.

"They asked if I had taken cocaine and I said yes."

Isabella later claimed to have been "coaxed" into making the admission, citing lack of sleep and food.

Olivia was woken in the middle of the night by a phone call from the British Consulate, who told her Isabella was being deported.

Isabella claims two armed officers escorted her onto a plane. Olivia went with her and the pair spent the flight getting drunk and watching films together. "It was the exact same cabin crew and they were so nice," Olivia said.

Isabella maintains she and Olivia were not intending to work in the US – they wanted to "have an adventure."

Isabella said: "Our main desire was just to go and have a bit of fun in a cultural environment that we thought might apply to us down the line."

US Customs and Border Protection, the Department of Homeland Security, the British Consulate in Los Angeles, and Norwegian Airlines all declined to comment.

Featured image credit: SWNS

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