Odd NSV - Customs

Earlier this year I was coming back from a family vacation in St. Maarten and had the fun experience of being selected for extra security screening when we were leaving the island. In St. Maarten is was explained to me that it was a random screening and they just did an additional pat down at the gate, checked my shoes and carry on and let me on the plane. At this point I thought nothing of it.

When we were going through customs at JFK the person checking my passport started asking questions about what I do for work and why I was traveling. At this point I just answered the questions even though I thought it was odd and progressed through to get my bags.

Once we got to the front of the security line to get back into the terminal for our flight home to Maine I was informed by the TSA employee that I needed to go through a secondary screening. I asked why I needed to do this since I had been selected for a random screen in St. Maarten. They told me that it was not random and that I was flagged for the screen and asked me if I knew why. It was 10 PM and I was tired from being on vacation and I said that I had not clue but I guess I had to go through the screening. Then after a short wait I got to experience the full detailed inspection where they even check inside of your waistband at the airport. I made it through and caught my flight, but the flagging bothered me.

The next morning I was talking about it with my wife and had my passport out and realized why I was flagged. After losing close to 100 lbs since my passport photo was taken 2.5 years prior my face looks significantly different and they thought that I was traveling on someone else's passport. Well, I guess it it time for the early passport renewal. Now I just need to see how to upload the other picture from my passport.