Travel

Aussie woman’s diary got her kicked out of Hawaii

Jun 05, 2017

A Melbourne woman who planned a three month holiday in Hawaii with her American boyfriend was imprisoned and deported in a “mortifying” experience.

Molly Hill, 26, resigned from her marketing job to spend the extended holiday with her boyfriend, who she met on a previous holiday in Hawaii for a friend’s wedding, however she was detained by US customs when she stepped off the plane in Honolulu.

Despite the fact that Hill had an 88-day tourist visa and a return ticket booked and paid for, officials were convinced that she was planning to immigrate illegally, and the reason all came down to her diary entries.

Hill’s diary contained entries such as “last day at work” and “going away drinks” as she planned her holiday, which were deemed suspicious.

Because there were no immediate flights back to Australia, she was forced to spend the night in a federal prison.

“I was frisked, made to undress in front of an officer and show that there was nothing in my hair or mouth, and asked to ‘squat and cough’ which was absolutely mortifying,” Hill wrote on Facebook.

Making the situation worse was the fact that the following day was her birthday.

The next day, she was handcuffed and taken back to the airport where she was finally allowed to call home, and had to pay $620 for a flight to Sydney.

“It’s been a surreal few days that’s taken a big chunk of money, heartache and tears.”