“They knew exactly who … I was”: Hasan Piker says he was detained, questioned by U.S. Customs and Border Patrol at Chicago O’Hare International Airport

Popular Twitch streamer Hasan Piker, who frequently discusses politics and current events while playing games on his channel, says he was stopped and questioned by U.S. Customs and Border Patrol.

Why was Hasan Piker questioned at the airport?

Piker says the questioning occurred when he arrived at Chicago O’Hare International Airport from a Mother’s Day trip to France.

Despite having Global Entry, a pre-screening qualification that allows passengers who have been pre-approved to pass through customs more easily, Piker was pulled aside and detained.

“They take me to a back room, and we get to talking,” he says in a viral TikTok. “It’s very obvious that they knew exactly who the [expletive] I was.”

Piker says he decided to be “very revealing” during the questioning. He says he explained that he was traveling to Chicago for a journalism speaking event and that he frequently talks about current events on his Twitch stream.

He claims the agent asked him if he “talks about Trump” on his streams.

“What the [expletive] is this question?” Piker exclaims. “None of these questions are actually valid questions to ask.”

Piker says he believes U.S. Customs and Border Patrol was trying to “create an environment of fear” to discourage citizens from speaking negatively about the current administration. He cites other TikTokers who claim they were questioned about their political beliefs while reentering the United States.

Did U.S. Customs and Border Patrol respond to Piker?

A spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security tells NBC News that Piker’s account is “nothing but lying for likes” when asked about his detainment.

“Claims that his political beliefs triggered the inspection are baseless,” Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin writes in the statement. “Our officers are following the law, not agendas.

In the comments of Piker’s TikTok, viewers react to the Department of Homeland Security’s statement.

“It’s giving, ‘there is no war in Ba Sing Se,’” one writes.

“This is Fascism. Point blank period,” another says.

“If you’re not allowed to criticize the president without facing repercussions, I think everyone in America should be terrified,” a third adds.

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