Conditional Discharge For Undressing At Airport
36-year-old Loukai Phillips was given a conditional discharge today [Aug.22] in Magistrates Court after pleading guilty to one charge of indecent exposure.
Ms Phillips had arrived back in Bermuda via a British Airways flight, and was asked by customs officers to undergo a secondary search. The court heard that she undressed in front of other passengers at the LF Wade International Airport on August 19.
Her lawyer told the court that his client did so out of frustration, as she was tired after the long flight from London, and felt that customs officers were harassing her and frequently did so in her travels.
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Did they do the secondary search? Or will that become a decoy so they don’t do it?
I LIKE HER A LOT!!!!
Can’t say i blame her as customs do sometimes make you feel that way. Sad but true.
They make the most professional of people feel like criminals at times. If you have to many tattoos or dread locks etc you usually are searched. Not everyone but the majority. It’s called Stereotyping individuals and assuming the worse.
Actually it’s called profiling.
I can see how that can be possible…and I agree with SML, it’s basically a Stereotype procedure in my opinion as well.
The nerve!
Of course they have a job to do…but i get even more annoyed especially after hearing how some customs officers use to work along with the illegal activities coming through that airport.
There is something else i would like to add however some things are better of not said.
God don’t sleep!
You all are pretty much right. Some people that bring in illegal drugs, guns and whatever is on their list are never checked. I guess it’s only people who they don’t like, if you travel too often, if you’ve been abroad for a long time and don’t have an abundance of shopping items, if you don’t look right you get the 3rd degree! All the time they are looking at us, the Mr. Businessman, and the ‘people that don look like us’ slip by ‘ These people at Customs need to search their own colleagues, friends and family as well. but they don’t. There is plenty of news reports about unethical behavior among those who should keep the law!!
Oh please, I’ve come through the airport and seen “Professional People” get searched and guess what…drugs were found in their belongings. Is that stereotyping?
i usually get searched too. i felt like doing the same thing out of frustration…..” i wouldn’t go to the extreme” but they can piss someone off.
I always get searched and sometimes think of doing something similar… Good for her for taking a stand and bringing customs back into the spotlight!
When I travel with my friend (who has dreads) they always search him for about an hour while I wait on the side and then when they get to me it takes about five minutes. At times I just feel like telling them that if they can search him so thoroughly they can search me the same too. I have never had to be body searched but they always do it to him. Its somewhat annoying, not that I want them to search me but for them to treat us equally. I mean damn, if he wanted to bring in drugs he could stash it in my bag and he would be clean. Of course I would not do it but with them profiling like that gives the people they do not look at a chance to do something illegal.
I really understand how this person feels. Like,”you wanna search me, go right ahead, I will help you make it faster and take all of my clothes off.” I wouldnt do the same but I feel her pain. Get off a long ass flight to be harrassed by customs officers who wanna feel you up and invade ya personal space.
Home girl had just about enough! lol!!
yeah, but here is what we want to know. Is she hot?
I’d agree to be searched if the person doin’ the searchin’ was hot.
@ sandgrownan, your best post thus far!
Well, unfortunately they only use officers of the same sex to search you. So unless you’re into that kind of thing, it doesn’t make a difference if the officer is hot or not. Sorry
Bugger.
Plus it’s customs. They all fell out the ugly tree. And hit all the branches on the way down.
LOL…….sandgrownan…your hilarious!
One time I bought a friend from NJ with me to BDA. I’m Bermudian but was living abroad for quite sometime. We were the only blacks on the flight and of course they went through all her bags and stuff on our arrival into BDA. It was her first time to BDA, and it was quite embarassing, and I told the male so. I asked him why we were pulled, and not anyone else, and was it because of the color of our skin? He claimed in was random and apologized and wanted to take us to dinner. I politely said no takes! The airport in BDA sucks!
BDA airport is like a scene out of a Gary Larson Far Side cartoon.
She is a very pretty girl. lol
I agree, she must have been really frustrated, but I do understand the frustration.
they do not even give the option to go to the hospital and be searched… that is an option but they do not read us our rights.
@ wow: Thank you for that info. I didn’t know that.
I can understand this young lady’s frustration. I have been fortunate to have always had polite Customs officers, not that they always start out that way, but I speak as I wish to be spoken to and they invariably respond in kind. However, when one officer says one thing and then you get a completely different story from another, it is easy to feel frustrated. And then to be singled out to be search every time you travel…in my youth, I might have done exactly as she did. Now, I just decide that certain things will happen and put myself n the frame of mind to deal with it with the least amount of stress to me.
“I can handle any problem life presents me with” is one of my favorite mantras
I agree with you Pastor Syl !!!
Its eaiser to get along and go with the program, even if its your own !
Correct…and even if they ‘don’t’ give the option upfront a passenger can refuse the personal search. At that stage senior officers become involved and that’s when the ‘hospital’ option usually comes up.
Wrong. U lot really need to read up on the procedures and know what rights you do and don’t have.
People need to realize that it is their right to speak with a senior officer on duty! If you do not want to be searched there, it’s YOUR RIGHT to be searched/examined at the Hospital. You don’t have to wait for them to tell you that-learn your rights!
Also, people don’t know that these officers can and are held accountable. They DO cross the line and CAN be written up or even FIRED for stepping over the line. I know of officers who have been discliplined and even fired for delving too deeply in peoples business and crossing the line-one for suggesting that a female visitor was here to mess with somebody’s man. She tried to squirm out of it, say it was a joke, etc. but FIRED!!!
THEY ARE NOT GODS so stop treating them like they are!!!
yes FIRED…….let them do their jobs and CUSTOMS….get some etiquette classes and cameras in your place if you don’t. I HAVE never been searched so i don’t know.
Detz why I always carry a zip-lock bag of flour in my drawers….detz rite……Pisses em off, I get air condidtioning, free drinks, and laugh like hal………
Or, just pull it out and give it too em…….and tel um itz anntrax…….
#TEAMPHILLIPS
i’m with Riley B King, was she fine? When i come through customs i announce loudly that i am carry drugs and need to be searched. I have to date to never been searched.
lol yur not serious! My bro used to voluntarily get in the short line to be searched cuz he got out faster! They changed the rules because of hime
What rule did they change?
Next time ; Two piece bikini under a trench coat .. Holla !
they were undressing her with thier eyes anyway. Thats the thanks she gets for getting straight to the point….
LOL!!! that’s a good one!
At least if your going to put tourist through all this S**T at the airport let us stay for THREE MONTHS like everywhere else in the world!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Bermuda hates foreigners.
For sure !! WE LOVE FOREIGNERS !!!!
she was not a tourist.
Whenever I see the dog I make that dog jump on me it’s nothing worst then coming from a great vacation n being searched but if u don’t have any drugs on you don’t worry they are only doing there job.
To those that want to know, if there is a need to conduct a personal ( strip ) search, you are taken into a little room and searched by the same gender who evidently need permission from not only the passenger but also the senior officer. Should the passenger refuse it becomes obstruction, should the senior officer refuse it’s because there isn’t probable cause to have the search carried out. There is a travelers charter of rights that passengers should be aware of and instructions for making complaints. For those that want to go to the hospital go ahead and ask, but usually that trip is a bit more in depth i.e. X-ray and cavity search and takes some time. (been there). I feel for Ms Phillips as from what it seems she is always selected which can be annoying. She had enough.
We all know and realize by now that HMS Customs do a poor job at profiling the way they & the Police stand and stare at you as you walk off the plane into the arrivals hall. Don’t even look at them. I would have done the same thing she must have been frustrated.
While I have never been bodily searched, I would be interested to know if searches by local customs officers consider the city from which the flight originated. I recently returned on a direct flight from BWI airport in Baltimore and with the screening done there (full body/baggage scan), it would be almost impossible to carry anything illegal on the flight to Bermuda. As such, would passengers on this flight be subjected to body searches?
Just curious.
I would say that it doesn’t matter where the flight originated, the Gestapo will have their way with you. I remember the gurl in front of me having her baggage search, the female Gestapo ensured that the gurls ‘personal items’ were visible to everyone that was in the immediate area…..childish and immature to say the least. Almost felt like slapping the silly cow.
‘profiling’ … HA !
Anyone recall the story about one certain local who was busted after arriving on a flight from Jamaica .. Served about 3 years up at the west ..
Got out eventually and decided to reward himself with a nice trip. Where to ? Jamaica .
Got busted AGAIN on his return to Bda. When Customs asked him what he thought he was doing , he replied ‘ I didn’t think you’d search me twice in a row ! ‘
BERNEWS…please add pictures so that we can determine if her exposure was indecent or not….LOL
I have never been searched, and I can understand fully how a request for a stripsearch would agitate the hell out of anyone. HMS customs and bermuda government needs to understand that stripsearching is a thing of the past, along with sacrificing virgins to please the gods and slavery…. there are bodyscanners available these days…. C’mon guys, get professional and spend at least part of your budget wisely..
I completely understand her frustration. I get searched every time I go away..and for what? Nothin..I have never brought drugs onto the island, never had anything illegal on me, never given them any reason whatsoever to search me. The worst time was when I returned from a trip to Canada. I KNEW they would search me (as they do every single time I return to the island…and they talk bout “its random”..riiiigghhht ). I’m always polite and try to be patient, but this time was ridiculous. I arrived in front of the customs officer at about 2pm, she began by asking if I had my receipts (yes I did b/c I knew from being searched EVERY time I went away I would need them just for customs ). She took my receipts, photopied all of them, returned to me and began taking my items out of my bag, she then made 3 piles…1 with stuff I had before I left bermuda, 1 with stuff I had bought in canada that I HAD receipts for and one for the stuff I did not have receipts for. She then proceeded to highlight the stuff on the photocopied receipts as she went through my bag. I had bought some dvd’s from walmart (from the big bins they have sometimes that are 3 for $10) and had already watched one so the wrapping was off. WHY did she look it up on th internet and say, ” this dvd is sold at walmart for about $10″…as if there is 1 walmart in canada and she was on THAT stores website. I was already frustrated, but was polite and calm the entire time. This type of thing continued, and I realise I had forgotton to claim a pair of sneakers b/c I had bought them last
t min. And put them in my bag and a couple of smaller things. So I ask the lady how much I wed extra, as it was an honest mistake and I had been standing there for THREE hours AND I saw ppl who worked at the airport began to leave as they were done working for the day. Do u know how much extra I had to pay?! $16!!!!!! I was SO mad!! The customs officer and her boss kept saying, ” I know this is frustrating but thank u for being compliant” which was not helping. It left an even worse taste in my mouth about customs in Bermuda. To those of u who think it is ONLY those ppl who have dreads, are of a certain race, from a certain background etc who get searched. I am a young, single, white female..and have been told by a few ppl that we are targeted…because we are ” usually the drug mules for the men”…smh, I don’t blame this woman for what she did…the frustration can drive u to that point. I feel her frustration.
I am a white male, and whenever I travel alone I am regularly pulled out for a ‘random’ search, either getting on the plane (here), or when the checked luggage goes through the x-ray, or when I get back. I don’t have dreadlocks etc. I think it’s just that I’m traveling alone, maybe. It’s an inconvenience sometimes but I don’t really mind as long as the searcher (or customs official or whoever) is reasonably polite.
When I come into Bermuda I have receipts for every last minute thing. So if they want to look through my stuff I couldn’t care less, other than the time and inconvenience. I have bundles of receipts for them if they are really interested, but they’re wasting their time really.
By the way, the stuff written here about how you are singled out if you have tattoos or dreadlocks is inaccurate. I don’t have them, and I’m searched regularly.
so many stories of stupid behavior. They waste time searching people with not connection to illegal behavior when the real culprits simply pass through with a smile on their faces. HMS Customs a big wasted blob of useless red tape and out-dated processes
This is funny. I wonder how far did she go?
I had to laugh at this article as I could only imagine her frustration. She should have been carrying a boom box with her and put on some “strip” music and really given them a show!
Something has to be done about these situations. It can be very frustrating to be submitted to this kind of thing returning home from a vacation or for the hundreds of us that have to go away for medical reasons.Now days with all of the technology available you would think that these searches could be done keeping the travlers dignity in mind. I wonder if any of our polititions have had to endure this kind of thing or if they have even witnessed this happening,or do they have a special pass because they are who they are.with all of the cameras in place, someone of authority needs to start RANDOMLY searching some of these customs officers when they return from a trip and they can see what it feels like.I get searched so much that it really doesent even bother me any more,at least not to the extent that Im gonna show them that im irritated…..we just cant win for losing ….WHY
Customs need some serious training when it comes to dealing with the public face to face. They are ignorant in this department and you just can’t win. Your word against theirs and their word always wins. I’ve had my dealings with them and it has left a sour taste in my mouth too. Complain to the Ombudsman. Then they will get the message eventually. Their colleagues are the ones bringing in the drugs most of the time anyway. Look at the court cases recently. Check your own officers. That is where the shit is coming in! Drugs and guns.
where are the pictures??? cant the royal gazette do proper coverage?
is she hot? damn! i wish i was there to see that!
I saw her!!!
Did not get to see her nude, but was on this flight noticed they were seaching most BLACK ppl.
I was one! I feel for this young lady as I found her there,and left her there looked liked she had one or 2 very
small bags, my officer I had was ok,str8 to the point and stayed with me, yes I’m a tourist yes I felt it was because
I’m black, I was outside for about an hour,waiting for my ride and saw the same young lady coming out with a female officer.
I felt for her as I remember seen her agent leaving her going into a back room every 2 minutes, when I finally got out the airport
was empty with only 1lady with a teenage looking daughter left. I just smiled and shook my head as I see how Bermuda treat ppl coming
in.I thought this lady was about 21 that’s why she is been interrogated,but not.
Yes its a long flight and the last thing you want is an agent saying take your clothes off, I saw manys ways things could be done differently
I hope that HMS Customs have a second look @ there agants an address these some what serious issuse, Ms. Phillips I feel for you….
But was she hot?
Ok so you SAW her? But did you HEAR the conversation that her and the officer was having?
Last time we came back to Bermuda there were very long lines at Customs. I watched 2 middle aged Bermudian ladies walk to the head of the line and right past the customs officers. I wondered why they did not have to stand in line like the rest of us and claim what they had bought.
Either off duty custom officers bringing in drugs or government officials bringing in drugs?
The last time I saw middle-aged Bermudians get preferential treatment at customs they happened to be quite well-known people.
Ministers of the Government, actually.
You go Kai!! Now that’s what’s up!!! Call then on their bluff – I’m sure they were speachless and couldn’t even function – hell whose to say how they would have acted behind closed doors – I wonder if they tape those searches – just to ensure basic human rights are not infringed.
weak comments in support. who cares if you get searched every time you come back…..birds of a feather flock together and leopards NEVER change their spots
LOL LOL LOL Kai you know ya my girl n I love you like life!!!!!
Arriving at Bermuda airport = a perfect way to ruin what was a good vacation.
Yeah, but it accurately sets the tone for the rest of your trip LOL. Admittedly, it’s better with Cog peering down on you than Ewart sneering down on you. Marginally.
NEWS FLASH!!! The LF Wade treat Black Men like second class citizens…especially. I personally head straight to the inspection line.
They also do it to white guys. I think they are equal opportunity dic*wads when it comes to exercising their power trip. Been on the receiving end of it too.
I head straigt for the inspection line too, and I’m a little ole white lady!
Customs sucks! I’m a black male that was always treated badly by the black male customs officers coming in and by this one black female US agent on the way out!
RUDE! I found that it depends on where you say you’re staying too. Every time I said I was staying at a cousins house in Somerset I was searched. If used a Warwick address or the Princess Hotel. Nothing. Have a nice day!
I am mad I didn’t think of doing this first! I bet she won’t get searched again! LOL!!
Honestly, SOME customers officers can make this process rather frustrating. I don’t mind being searched cause I know I am clean. But it’s the questions they ask that annoy me. I was away for two weeks with my husband for medical reasons. Clearly there was no time for shopping so when we handed in our form, they were like ‘You were away for TWO weeks and this is all your spent!’ Um…..ya not seriously asking us that are you?? I was flabergasted. That resulted us to hang right to be searched and further asked dumb unnecessary questions. I ended up flashing the dude my huge scar from the surgery before he quickly wrapped things up and sent us on our way.
I know they have a job to do, but come on!!!!!
#thatisall
I have been body searched. I said to myself that I was going to make them feel just as uncomfortable as In feel. I looked at my dauther and said to her, (wait till I tell your father that this is the most action I have Had all week) LOL
LOL I thought the same thing…pretend to be gay and enjoy it….then I thought wat if the CO is gay 4 real……
A gay person would enjoy being strip searched by a man as much as a straight woman would enjoy being raped by a man….as in not at all. Being violated is not erotic.
I heard someone say that U have to realize these workers hang about all day eating then the badge goes to the head and they think they are they are the CIA,then when the family comes in after a shoppin trip they personally walk them through to the exits
Someone said there is a black list also if u cause trouble you stay on it even if minor things .
I am so tired of hearing all of you peoples’ s&*t!!! So let me give it to you straight as a long time friend of a Customs Officer. Bermuda gets over 30% of the Government’s annual revenue from Customs. Customs are responsible for catching drugs, guns, other illegal substances, and people that try to avoid paying their taxes (yes ladies and gentlemen duty is a tax). They work long hours for not so great pay and almost NOBODY ever thanks them for what they do!
But everyone on this island wants to b#T^H about the fact that we have gangs here that can operate because they have drugs to sell, guns to use and so on and so forth. And everyone wants to complain about going through compliance checks at the airport to ensure that they pay the duty that they owe or to ensure that you are not carrying drugs. But you do not B*t^h or moan when your roads are paved or when your trash is collected! Where do you think the money comes from???
What do you want from these officers? You, the Bermudian public at large, are mad if they try to do their job and you’re mad if they don’t. You claim that, “my son is a good boy who doesn’t deal with drugs” but then my friend has to appear in court to testify after he caught your son with drugs in his suitcase or strapped to his body.
If you, the Bermudian public at large, did more for your own families and taught them to be better citizens then honest, hardworking people like my friend wouldn’t have to detain or arrest anyone for anything. He would be able to go to work everyday and stand there and say, Welcome to Bermuda I hope you enjoy your visit. Or welcome home, I hope you enjoyed your vacation!” And after knowing him for as long as I have I can assure you that he would be a happier person if he could do that.
Just think about it… There is always two sides to every story…
Give me a break and untie your knickers. We would complain a lot less if customs did their job effectively. We’re not talking about securing the port of Los Angeles, or the US-Mexico border. We talking about one small airport, one container dock and one port of entry.
And yet we still have drugs and guns in our community. The problem is that we are frustrated by the lack of success and the lack of professionalism of customs officers, not to mention the obvious power trip.
Did I mention those that appear not have to go through customs…? Cabinet Ministers for example..
STFU with that BS!! We ALL know Customs officers are perves and they get a kick out of searching ppl and harassing them like they’re God or something!! They need to get off their high horses because they let the real smugglers just walk right by because they know who they’re “really” working for…. Just like the TSA in the states!!! Sorry to say but your friend is one of them, they know who to hire because they look for a specific personality type!!
Damn straight! Customs are “damned if they do, damned if they dont.” they should just let everyone through, no searches at all. see how many guns and drugs come in. see what the public says then. we complain that they arent doing their jobs then we complain that they are doing their jobs! you should all spend a week in the life of a customs officer, putting in 16 hour days, back to back, not all the time, but a lot of the time.
always 2 sides to a story.
Oh shut up! And for the record I also have a friend in Customs who just recently sat up and informed several of us that YES Customs Officers do “Black List” people based on several different factors, most of which are simply personal with a “scratch my back, I’ll scratch yours” mentality (AKA: I dont like him/her so handle that for me). And if their sole purpose was to search for all that you have stated then EVERYBODY would be searched, not the same people each and everytime they travel.
Unfortunately I am one of those who gets searched EVERY time I return despite the fact that I have a well paid job with a very reputable company. The only reason that I have been given for being “suspect” is that 40 years ago my then best friend whom I haven’t seen for years was caught selling weed……|
Really that is the type of crap we are subjected too….
So again I say unless YOU IMO are willing to stand up and tell the WHOLE STORY please take a backseat and STFU!
And I may add, who the hell wants to “Thank” somebody for deliberately putting them through some completely unnecessary BS all because their uniform, badge, and personal vendetas allows them too????
@ Karma – Most of which are “scatch my back, I’ll scratch yours”. Really? Well, there are always a few bad apples in the bunch. And if you believe that so strongly then why don’t you report your friend?
Here’s a little common sense for you too. If every single person was to be searched going through the airport then not only would the local population be in an uproar, but you could be sure that tourists would think twice about coming back. Tell me one other country in the world that searches every single passenger (besides Israel but they have the manpower).
As for you being searched everytime…you have a good job, fantastic, but do you have a criminal record? Have you ever been forced to pay duty on goods that you didn’t declare? Are you always travelling alone or are you still keeping bad company as you did when you were younger?
And the “Thank You” part should come because these officers go to work everyday to collect the revenue (that our Government loves to spend) and protect this island from a worse fate then we’re seeing now.
What is ridiculous is to search at all. You have 100,000 agents irritating millions of travelers daily over 10 years in order to find one nut-job terrorist with a shoe bomb. If I am looking for a needle in a haystack, the absolute LAST approach I would use is to pick up each strand of hay one at a time. This is the best that governments can come up with? No wonder the world is full of crap.
Yeah you are right.. Why do we search at all!!!>?
After reading all of these comments, I wonder if any of you who travel abroad and get searched every time would do what she did. The answer is a resounding NO!! So why do it here when you get home?
Exactly, does anyone complain when they are searched overseas….um NO! Typical.
Y’all make me laugh. I swear Bermudians and via osmosis people that live here are the biggest bitchers and complainers known to man. What this young lady did was wrong regardless of how frustrated she felt. And I’d bet good money that she wouldn’t do that anywhere else in the world. Familiarity breeds contempt and we see this type of contempt happening towards our police, prison officers, immigration and customs officers – and our court system. Get mad, get frustrated, poke fun at them via your facebook posts and comments under a story like this but don’t lose respect for the people that have been appointed to do the job that they do because you – yes you – have friends, neighbours and family members who do lie about how much they have bought in to avoid paying Govt their due, will smuggle in drugs through some of the most creative and not so creative methods and will consider making a quick run for someone because they have never been searched before. This young lady created a distraction for who knows whom whether intentional or not. And as is typical, lets make the searches a race issue because it is convenient when telling your story and not based on any concrete proof. Your story is based on your experience on the day and moment you came through. You have no basis to say only black people were pulled over or only white people with tatoos were pulled over. This island is truly equal opportunity when it comes to liars and drug dealers and as a result we all have to grin and bear it to be afforded entry into what remains one of the most beautiful places on earth. Thank you Police, Prisons, Immigration, Customs!
Nobody bit*hes when one does their job. Masses bit*h when they ABUSE their position…..There is a HUGE difference between the two.
THATS THE SHIT SIS!!!!! YOUR ALWAYS BEEN A REALEST KAI!! NUFF RESPECT FOR DAT LOL
Just hitting the UK Daily Mail headlines today…
Hope Bermuda Customs feels the pain now that
we all feel coming thru the Bermuda airport..
Well, if you’re frustrated because of the apparent lack of results then why not look at the Government who have continuously denied giving them more manpower and updated equipment? And don’t even mention that they are providing an x-ray scanner for the docks because (1) It’s not even up and running yet (2) The Government had to get that equipment because the United States is making it manditory for all containers entering their ports to be pre-scanned and (3) they will only have enough time and dock workers (Customs and equipment operators) to handle OUTBOUND containers.