NY- Four fans celebrating a birthday at Giants Stadium were plucked from their seats by New Jersey State Police and detained for nearly an hour as FBI agents probed their religious beliefs, the men charged yesterday.
The alleged racial profiling during the Sept. 19 Giants-Saints game – the second such charge leveled against the stadium on that day – humiliated the men and set off a barrage of hateful jibes from fans in the upper deck, they said.
“When we got the tickets we said, ‘This was going to be a day we’ll never forget,'” said Mathew Varughese, a Westchester County lawyer. “And, indeed, it was a day we’ll never forget.”
Varughese, 26, an Indian-American, said FBI agents were cordial, but aggressive as they probed the mens’ religious backgrounds and nationalities before releasing them 45 minutes later.
They also allegedly asked the men – two Indian-Americans, a Dominican-American and another friend who is multiracial – if they had cameras or if they had been praying. The friends, all of whom are Christian, answered ‘no’ to both questions.
A group of Muslim men have said they were the victims of racial profiling and detained at the game for praying.
Varughese and his friends do not plan on filing a lawsuit.
The New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority and the FBI denied the allegations. FBI spokesman Steve Siegel said the agents had responded to concerns from other fans.