Two members of British family arrested after 'swerving to miss an animal and accidentally driving from Canada into America' had previously been denied entry to the US, border officials reveal.
The family said they blundered into Washington state while trying to avoid an animal in the road on the Canadian side and have since been 'treated like criminals' by their US jailers.
They say they have been subjected to filthy conditions in the Berks Detention Center in Leesport, Pennsylvania, since October 5.
The agency said that border agents tried returning the family to Canada, but Canada refused to have them back. After making two attempts to contact British consular officials, the border patrol said it turned the family over to U.S. immigration officials for removal proceedings.
It comes after footage emerged from Eileen's Instagram account appearing to show the couple travelling at speeds of up to 170kph (105mph) near the Canadian border.
Relatives back in Surrey say they are sick with worry and fear for Eileen in particular who is growing weak with hunger and stress.
Eileen is sharing a small room with her baby son, Grace and the twins and is too frightened to venture out other than to phone home and eat a meagre breakfast.
'At the moment Eileen is sleeping in a small room with Grace and the children.
'When I speak to her she sounds calm but I think that's an act to make sure the kids are ok.
'Inside she's absolutely terrified. She spends most of the time in the room with Tommy because she's scared to venture out.
They were staying in Vancouver and had gone into the surrounding countryside to go fishing.
'They were on their way back when Michael swerved to avoid a large animal, a moose I think, and ended up on a country road which led across the border.
'The first they actually knew they'd gone into the States was when they'd actually turned around and were heading back when they were surrounded by police vehicles.
David and Michael were taken to a detention centre in Washington while Eileen and Grace and the kids were put up in a budget hotel nearby.
'The immigration people stayed with them throughout, wouldn't let them make any calls and told them nothing about what was happening.
'They were there for two days before they were all reunited again at an airport near Seattle. For some reason they were flown to Chicago and then had a connecting flight to New York where they were driven to Pennsylvaniana.
It's all a bit odd, how do you accidentally drive over the border so far that the border force pick you up? (Never been to Vancouver)
Why wouldn't Canada let them back in?
www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2019/10/15/british-family-claim-us-officials-kidnapped-accidentally-straying
www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2019/10/15/eileen-connors-british-family-ice-vacation-detention/