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CNN Sunday Morning

American Couple Released From Kenyan Custody

Aired December 01, 2002 - 11:05   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


CAROL LIN, CNN ANCHOR: An American and her husband who were held for questioning in the Mombasa bombing are talking about their ordeal. The couple was freed yesterday. CNN senior international correspondent Sheila MacVicar joins us live from Mombasa with their story.
Sheila, what drew attention to them in the first place?

SHEILA MACVICAR, CNN SR. INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, in a lot of ways, Carol, it was being in the wrong place at absolutely the wrong time. They were staying in a beach hotel some ways down the beach, so far down the beach, in fact, that they say they didn't even hear that blast at 8:30 on Thursday morning.

They decided, though, that they wanted to leave their hotel. It was another hotel that was very popular with Israelis. There were many Israelis there. There was a lot of commotion, they told us, and the Israelis were trying to leave the hotel.

They had a rental car. They thought that that would be a safer thing to do. So they went to check out of the hotel, and when they went to check out of the hotel, they were told they couldn't leave and they were taken away by Kenyan police.

Apparently, that act of trying to check out of the hotel just a short while after the blast had occurred, that aroused suspicion. The police had given an order that anyone who is trying to leave hotels should be stopped.

They were taken away to a police station and taken into custody for interrogation. Held for more than 48 hours. I asked Alicia Kalhammer and her husband, Jose Pepe Tena, if there was a moment when they thought or they feared they might be made into scapegoats.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ALICIA KALHAMMER: From day one, from minute one. We knew that because we knew we had no involvement whatsoever. And when we finally were taken to the police station and held there, we thought, you know, these people could put us in jail and throw away the key and no one would know that we were here. Absolutely no one.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MACVICAR: Now, Alicia and Pepe were on what they described as a kind of nostalgia trip. Alicia had lived in Kenya as a child. Both of her parents, American diplomats.

They managed to buy a mobile phone card for one of the Kenyan guards and got him to make a phone call for them to a friend in Nairobi, who was able to get the American embassy on the phone. And it was that phone call to the American embassy that brought American diplomats, including the regional security officer, the RSO, to the prison the next day.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KALHAMMER: Sometime that afternoon, Craig Mass (ph) and two other guys from the American embassy showed up. Craig Mass (ph) is the RSO, one of the RSO people there, and sort of came charging into the police station saying, do you have American citizens here? And we were sitting right there, they could see us. And of course, I just burst into tears, like, oh, the Cavalry is here, and feeling immense relief. I mean, that is a sight that no American should ever have to go through, but you're in that situation, thank God that they're there. Thank God that they're there.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MACVICAR: Well, Alicia and her husband, Pepe, have been released. They were among two of the suspects that Kenyan government officials have been talking about since shortly after that blast. They are now freed and, Carol, they say that they plan to continue their vacation here in Kenya. Pretty resilient young couple.

LIN: You bet. All right. Well, Sheila, can you tell us about the 10 other people who are being detained by police and questioned, then?

MACVICAR: There may, in fact, be more than 10, but the government is now acknowledging 10. There are six Pakistanis and four Somalis, and they came into Mombasa port last Monday, four days before the blast, onboard a leaky, old wooden dow (ph), a kind of fishing vessel, carrying a cargo of dried fish.

Now, they came into port. The boat was leaking. They couldn't leave port. And some of them, but not all of them, we are told, some of them had papers that were questionable.

After the blast on Thursday, they were arrested by police and were told are still being held in prison. We're also told that the ship's captain goes every day to the prison to try to get them out, but so far no word on their status. There have been no charges filed against them, and as to any other suspects that Kenya may be holding, the Kenyan government hasn't so far said -- Carol.

LIN: All right, the investigation continues. Thank you very much, Sheila MacVicar, reporting live there from Mombasa.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com






Aired December 1, 2002 - 11:05   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL LIN, CNN ANCHOR: An American and her husband who were held for questioning in the Mombasa bombing are talking about their ordeal. The couple was freed yesterday. CNN senior international correspondent Sheila MacVicar joins us live from Mombasa with their story.
Sheila, what drew attention to them in the first place?

SHEILA MACVICAR, CNN SR. INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, in a lot of ways, Carol, it was being in the wrong place at absolutely the wrong time. They were staying in a beach hotel some ways down the beach, so far down the beach, in fact, that they say they didn't even hear that blast at 8:30 on Thursday morning.

They decided, though, that they wanted to leave their hotel. It was another hotel that was very popular with Israelis. There were many Israelis there. There was a lot of commotion, they told us, and the Israelis were trying to leave the hotel.

They had a rental car. They thought that that would be a safer thing to do. So they went to check out of the hotel, and when they went to check out of the hotel, they were told they couldn't leave and they were taken away by Kenyan police.

Apparently, that act of trying to check out of the hotel just a short while after the blast had occurred, that aroused suspicion. The police had given an order that anyone who is trying to leave hotels should be stopped.

They were taken away to a police station and taken into custody for interrogation. Held for more than 48 hours. I asked Alicia Kalhammer and her husband, Jose Pepe Tena, if there was a moment when they thought or they feared they might be made into scapegoats.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ALICIA KALHAMMER: From day one, from minute one. We knew that because we knew we had no involvement whatsoever. And when we finally were taken to the police station and held there, we thought, you know, these people could put us in jail and throw away the key and no one would know that we were here. Absolutely no one.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MACVICAR: Now, Alicia and Pepe were on what they described as a kind of nostalgia trip. Alicia had lived in Kenya as a child. Both of her parents, American diplomats.

They managed to buy a mobile phone card for one of the Kenyan guards and got him to make a phone call for them to a friend in Nairobi, who was able to get the American embassy on the phone. And it was that phone call to the American embassy that brought American diplomats, including the regional security officer, the RSO, to the prison the next day.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KALHAMMER: Sometime that afternoon, Craig Mass (ph) and two other guys from the American embassy showed up. Craig Mass (ph) is the RSO, one of the RSO people there, and sort of came charging into the police station saying, do you have American citizens here? And we were sitting right there, they could see us. And of course, I just burst into tears, like, oh, the Cavalry is here, and feeling immense relief. I mean, that is a sight that no American should ever have to go through, but you're in that situation, thank God that they're there. Thank God that they're there.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MACVICAR: Well, Alicia and her husband, Pepe, have been released. They were among two of the suspects that Kenyan government officials have been talking about since shortly after that blast. They are now freed and, Carol, they say that they plan to continue their vacation here in Kenya. Pretty resilient young couple.

LIN: You bet. All right. Well, Sheila, can you tell us about the 10 other people who are being detained by police and questioned, then?

MACVICAR: There may, in fact, be more than 10, but the government is now acknowledging 10. There are six Pakistanis and four Somalis, and they came into Mombasa port last Monday, four days before the blast, onboard a leaky, old wooden dow (ph), a kind of fishing vessel, carrying a cargo of dried fish.

Now, they came into port. The boat was leaking. They couldn't leave port. And some of them, but not all of them, we are told, some of them had papers that were questionable.

After the blast on Thursday, they were arrested by police and were told are still being held in prison. We're also told that the ship's captain goes every day to the prison to try to get them out, but so far no word on their status. There have been no charges filed against them, and as to any other suspects that Kenya may be holding, the Kenyan government hasn't so far said -- Carol.

LIN: All right, the investigation continues. Thank you very much, Sheila MacVicar, reporting live there from Mombasa.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com