Canada immigration officials illegally transferred him over the border to US officials on September 12, 2001, and he was moved to a holding cell in upstate New York and then to a high-security detention centre in Brooklyn and then to one in Buffalo. He said he was kept in solitary confinement and alleged that he was tortured and humiliated while in US custody. He has reported that officials shackled his wrists and feet, tied his chest with a chain, and denied him sleep. He was not given access to a lawyer until late April 2002. A United Nations working group later described the treatment of Benatta as torture.