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Calgary seniors Carl and Sandra Hannigan were looking forward to a stress-free flight home after a 10-day visit to Mexico.

But the two said they were stunned when U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officials pulled them aside at the Salt Lake City International Airport to fingerprint and photograph them.

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The couple were on their way to catch a connecting flight to Calgary on Feb. 13 when what they call the privacy intrusion occurred, a process that took about 10 minutes.

After showing their boarding passes and Canadian passports, “we were told to put our hands on a green scanner, then they took facial photos,” said Carl Hannigan, 75, a Calgary veterinarian.

“It was a little bit unsettling and unnerving … I felt our privacy was invaded.”

Hannigan said he wasn’t about to object to the agents collecting the data, despite his frustration.

“I’m not the kind to zip my lip but I didn’t dare ask him,” said the U.K. native, who’s been a Canadian citizen since 1973.