PHOTO: Armann Singh Sarai, held for three days by police because of a battery charger
Three months after arresting a 14-year-old for bringing a homemade electronic clock to school, police in the metropolitan area of Dallas, Texas have struck again.
A 12-year-old in Arlington was detained on December 11 for three days — and is still wearing an electronic locator on his ankle — because of a backpack with a built-in battery charger.
Armaan Singh Sarai, who has had multiple heart surgeries due to a congenital problem, was seized on suspicion that the solar panel on the phone charger was a bomb.
Singh’s cousin Ginee Haer wrote on Facebook, “A bully in class thought it would be funny to accuse him of having a bomb, and so the principal, without any questioning, interrogation, or notification to his parents, called the police.”
I thought it was just a joke, so I started laughing and then he started laughing too.
The next thing you know, I’m reading with my friend and police come in, grab me and take me outside.
Police charged Singh, whose family is Sikh, with “making a terroristic threat”. He was released on condition that he wears a locator cuff and remains under house arrest until he appears in court.
It is unclear if the student is being charged as an adult or a child, or if the charge is a misdemeanor or a felony.
There are more than a few parallels to “clock kid” Ahmed Mohamed, who was fourteen years old and living with his family in a Dallas suburb when he was accused of bringing a bomb to school.
There are more than a few parallels to “clock kid” Ahmed Mohamed, who was fourteen years old and living with his family in a Dallas suburb when he was accused of bringing a bomb to school.
In September, the case of 14-year-old Ahmed Mohamed was arrested in Irving, near Dallas, for the clock which was suspected of being a bomb. He was questioned for 1 1/2 hours, handcuffed, and fingerprinted before he was finally released to his parents. He was never charged, but was suspended from school.
After his case received international attention, Mohamed was received by firms such as Google and prominent politicians including President Obama, who told the audience, “We have to watch for and cultivate and encourage those glimmers of curiosity and possibility, not suppress them, not squelch them.”
Writing about her cousin’s case, Ginee Haer concluded:
It hurts my heart and boils my blood that there are people stupid enough out there not only accusing us, but our innocent children of being terrorists! It sickens me even more that there are people even more stupid out there, taking their word for it.
My cousin is a minor and was arrested without any evidence or guardian present! This should show you how fucked up the system is! There are good people out there, but the majority of the system is corrupt! All these bastards see is race & the color of your skin!
He’s more than what meets the eye people! I’m more, you’re more, we’re all more! The color of your skin does not define who you are!