Man on No-Fly List, Companion Detained

Two Moroccan men were taken off a flight from Paris bound for Washington after officials determined one of the men was on the U.S. no-fly list.

Air France Flight 026 was diverted to Bangor on Saturday night, and the two men were detained at a local jail. They were being transported to Massachusetts on Sunday as officials investigated why the passenger was allowed to board the plane in Paris.

The second man detained was traveling with the banned passenger.

Paula Grenier, spokeswoman for Immigrations and Customs Enforcement, said the men would be expelled from the country within the next couple of days. She did not comment on why one of the men was on the no-fly list.

Officials at the Penobscot County Jail in Bangor where the men were held Saturday night identified them as Abdeluala Ahmed Lahiti, 47, and Mohammed Oukassou, 76.

The plane eventually flew on to Dulles International Airport, arriving more than two hours late.

Passengers, who were unaware that there was a problem until they crossed into U.S. airspace, said everything went smoothly, though some were alarmed by the incident.

The plane, a Boeing 777, had 263 passengers on board, an Air France spokeswoman said.