Training Exercise Mix-Up: Defense Department Mistakenly Detain Innocent Hotel Guest

Defense Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) mistakenly detained an innocent hotel guest
Participants in the training exercise allegedly entered the wrong room and were not able to detain the actual individual who was assigned the role of the person to be detained
The exercise was designed to simulate what personnel could encounter during an actual incident while on the field

The Defense Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) face criticism after personnel mistakenly detained an innocent hotel guest as participants conducted a training exercise at a Boston lodging establishment on Tuesday.

The officials allegedly entered the wrong room and took the wrong individual instead of the one assigned the role of the person that should be detained. The mix-up reportedly occurred around 10:00 p.m. as the Boston Division of the FBI worked to help the US Defense Department conduct the training exercise.

Innocent Hotel Guest Detained During Training Exercise

The department's training exercise was meant to give personnel a simulation of what they could expect to experience during an actual incident. In a written statement, an FBI official said that the personnel, given inaccurate information, were led to the wrong hotel room and mistakenly detained an innocent hotel guest, as per Politico.

The FBI official added that it was fortunate that no one was injured during the training exercise. The Department of Defense did not immediately return a call that sought details regarding the incident.

Officials also said that the Boston Police Department was called and responded to the incident scene to confirm that what had transpired was a training exercise. The FBI's statement added that the agency's priority was safety and their law enforcement partners' well-being.

A Delta Air Lines spokesman also said that the company was trying to determine whether or not anyone from the airline might have been mistakenly caught up in the incident. In a written statement, the spokesperson said that they were reviewing the reports of the alleged incident in Boston that could involve Delta people.

Training for Real-World Incidents

When questioned about the incident, a Defense Department spokesman referred media outlets to the US Army Special Operations Command public affairs office for details. A spokesperson for the command, responsible for overseeing the various special operations forces of the United States Army, said that several members were undergoing "essential military training" with help from the FBI's Boston Division at the time of the incident, according to ABC News.

Lt. Col. Mike Burns said the training exercise was designed to enhance personnel's skills to operate in realistic and unfamiliar environments. He said that the training team, unfortunately, entered the wrong room and detained someone unaffiliated with the exercise.

Burns added that officials carefully reviewed the unfortunate incident with their partners to determine what went wrong and how things went awry. He also apologized to the individual who was wrongly detained amid the training exercise of the Defense Department personnel, said Yahoo Finance.