José E. Meléndez-Pérez (born January 2, 1946) is a
Puerto Rican-born
United States Immigration and Naturalization Service
The United States Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) was an agency of the U.S. Department of Labor from 1933 to 1940 and the U.S. Department of Justice from 1940 to 2003.
Referred to by some as former INS and by others as legacy INS, ...
Inspector at
Orlando International Airport who became a key figure for the
9/11 Commission when he refused entry to an alleged terrorist prior to the
September 11, 2001 attacks.
Personal life
José Meléndez-Pérez is one of three sons born to chauffeur, Nicolas Meléndez (1912–1998) and women's nightwear factory maker, Francisca Pérez (born 1924). He has six half-siblings (three half-brothers and three half-sisters) from his father's other relationships. His parents divorced in 1975 after 30 years of marriage. He married twice and has five children, Freddy, Maribel, Brenda, Jose Jr. and Nelson. One of Meléndez-Pérez sons, José Jr. is a Directorate Sergeant Major in the
U.S. Army Rangers
United States Army Rangers, according to the US Army's definition, are personnel, past or present, in any unit that has the official designation "Ranger". The term is commonly used to include graduates of the US Army Ranger School, even if t ...
since August 1996 and served in
War in Afghanistan
War in Afghanistan, Afghan war, or Afghan civil war may refer to:
*Conquest of Afghanistan by Alexander the Great (330 BC – 327 BC)
* Muslim conquests of Afghanistan (637–709)
*Conquest of Afghanistan by the Mongol Empire (13th century), see al ...
and
Iraq War
{{Infobox military conflict
, conflict = Iraq War {{Nobold, {{lang, ar, حرب العراق (Arabic) {{Nobold, {{lang, ku, شەڕی عێراق ( Kurdish)
, partof = the Iraq conflict and the War on terror
, image ...
with the
319th Field Artillery Regiment of the
82nd Airborne Division. His other son, Nelson, is a police officer with the
Puerto Rico Police
The Puerto Rico Police Department ( es, Policía de Puerto Rico), officially the Puerto Rico Police Bureau, is a law enforcement agency with jurisdiction over the entire Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. It is a division of the Puerto Rico Department ...
. One of his daughters, Brenda, is married to an
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement
The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is a federal law enforcement agency under the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. ICE's stated mission is to protect the United States from the cross-border crime and illegal immigration tha ...
officer serving in the U.S. Embassy in
Frankfurt
Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , " Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on it ...
,
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
.
Career
Meléndez-Pérez's story is told in the book ''Instinct'' by Michael Smerconish (Lyons Press, September 2009), as well as Glenn Beck's ''Miracles and Massacres'' (Threshold Editions/Mercury Radio Arts, 2013). Prior to the formation of the
Department of Homeland Security
The United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is the U.S. federal executive department responsible for public security, roughly comparable to the interior or home ministries of other countries. Its stated missions involve anti-terr ...
, he was employed by the
U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service
The United States Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) was an agency of the U.S. Department of Labor from 1933 to 1940 and the U.S. Department of Justice from 1940 to 2003.
Referred to by some as former INS and by others as legacy INS, ...
(INS) from November 15, 1992, to April 30, 2003.
He joined the
United States Army
The United States Army (USA) is the land warfare, land military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight Uniformed services of the United States, U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army o ...
, where he served honorably for over 26.5 years (1965-1992). He served two tours of duty in the
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War (also known by other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vietnam a ...
, 1965–1966 and 1969–1970. He was later assigned as a
first sergeant to the
United States Army Recruiting Command
The United States Army Recruiting Command (USAREC) is responsible for manning both the United States Army and the Army Reserve. Recruiting operations are conducted throughout the United States, U.S. territories, and at U.S. military facilities in ...
.
After retiring from the U.S. Army, he began his career with INS in November 1992 at
Miami International Airport
Miami International Airport , also known as MIA and historically as Wilcox Field, is the primary airport serving the greater Miami metropolitan area with over 1,000 daily flights to 167 domestic and international destinations, including most c ...
as an inspector, and later as an inspector at Orlando International Airport. He was assigned for six months at the
Federal Law Enforcement Training Center in
Glynco, Georgia
Glynco is an area in Glynn County, Georgia located on the northwestern edge of Brunswick, Georgia. Glynco is a portmanteau of the words "Glynn County". History
In 1942 the Naval Air Station Glynco was established on the area now known as Glynco. ...
, providing assistance to the firearms program.
Actions on August 4, 2001
A
Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in Western Asia. It covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and has a land area of about , making it the fifth-largest country in Asia, the second-largest in the A ...
n national,
Mohammed al Qahtani
Mohammed Mani Ahmad al-Qahtani ( ar, محمد ماني احمد القحطاني) (sometimes transliterated as al-Kahtani) (born November 19, 1975) is a Saudi citizen who was detained as an al-Qaeda operative for 20 years in the United States's ...
, landed in Orlando on a
Virgin Atlantic
Virgin Atlantic, a trading name of Virgin Atlantic Airways Limited and Virgin Atlantic International Limited, is a British airline with its head office in Crawley, England. The airline was established in 1984 as British Atlantic Airways, and ...
flight. Since Qahtani's forms were not properly filled out, he was moved to a secondary interview, conducted by Meléndez-Pérez. Qahtani did not have a return ticket or a hotel. He had $2,800 in cash and no credit cards. Questions to where he would stay and where he would go were evasive. Besides being quite hostile, Qahtani also made contradictory statements regarding his plans.
Meléndez-Pérez advised his superiors to have him sent back. According to Meléndez-Pérez's testimony, he sent Qahtani back out of the United States, the man allegedly turned around to him and said "something to the effect of 'I'll be back.'"
Official Testimony of José Meléndez-Pérez to the 9/11 Commission
/ref>
See also
Samuel J. Heyman Service to America Medals (2004 Finalist)
References
External links
2004 Samuel J Heyman Service to America Medal Finalist honoree profile from the Partnership for Public Service website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Melendez-Perez, Jose
Living people
United States Army non-commissioned officers
United States Army personnel of the Vietnam War
People from Arroyo, Puerto Rico
Puerto Rican law enforcement personnel
Puerto Rican Army personnel
United States Army soldiers
1946 births