Forced to stay: Bates, seen here in an Instagram picture, was detained in KLIA after authorities found unloaded magazines in his luggage.
KUALA LUMPUR: A former Navy SEAL (Sea, Air and Land) who was arrested for carrying empty ammunition magazines in his luggage has been released on bail.
Selangor police chief Comm Datuk Hussein Omar Khan said the man was released on bail pending investigations.
“The man was detained at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) on Thursday after ammunition magazines were found in his luggage.
“He will not be allowed to leave the country at the moment while investigations are ongoing,” he said when contacted yesterday.
According to CBS Austin, US citizen and Navy veteran Ryan Bates was detained at a Malaysian airport on Thursday while attempting to return to his Henderson, Nevada home.
Bates’ wife Dianna was quoted saying she had not heard from her husband since he was escorted from KLIA late Thursday evening.
Bates, 43, has two young children.
Dianna posted an emotional plea on her Instagram account soon after learning her husband had been detained at the airport.
“Please help, I need someone at the US Embassy to help Ryan in Malaysia please,” she wrote.
It was learnt that Bates was working with Netflix on a new documentary series entitled The World’s Toughest Forces.
On his social media accounts, he described being detained in a series of videos he posted.
“So I’m being detained because I had military gear coming into this country. They’re trying to figure out why I have all of this stuff. It sucks,” he said on his social media account while Malaysian officials were going through his luggage.
“Alright update – now they are pondering what I have here and coming up with what they’re doing with me. Looking at the magazines right now. It’s not looking good,” he said in another video.
His last video had him saying that he was going to a police station.
