Plans for a festive holiday in the United States of America took a turn for the worse for one Scottish family as one of its members was denied entry into the country as he accidentally marked himself as 'a terrorist' on his visa form.

John Stevenson, 70-years-old, and his wife Marrion had made plans to visit New York City on the 3rd of December. The Scottish couple had spent in excess of 2000 pounds on flights and accommodation. But the 70-year-old Stevenson made the greatest blunder of his life while filling out the visa form that would render him as persona non grata in the eyes of American immigration authorities.

Monumental error

Filling out his Esta visa form on a computer, Stevenson stumbled upon a question which asked whether he was a terrorist. Instead of clicking on 'no', Stevenson, in haste, accidentally clicked on yes.

"We were filling out our visa form, and it kept timing out before we could tick all the boxes," began the 70-year-old. "Then it crashed, and when it came back up, you start where you finish off.

"One of the questions ask whether you are a terrorist and it must have jumped from No to Yes."

The couple from Inverclyde, 67 miles west of the Scottish capital of Edinburgh, now fear that Stevenson would never be allowed to enter the United States. The 70-year-old admits that this is the biggest nightmare that he has ever had.

Mr Stevenson even called American border control and gave them his passport details. But the officials looked up his Esta number and declared him as 'a terrorist'. Stevenson haplessly tried to convince the authorities that he does not even know what being a terrorist means.

Struggling to convince

Stevenson continued to struggle in his attempts at convincing American officials that he was not a terrorist.

In all his seventy years, Stevenson had only been in a court for jury duty. But this piece of information fell on deaf ears.

The couple also remains under suspicions that their phones might well be tapped or their movement possibly monitored.

The Scottish nationals booked their flights through United Airlines who have given the couple a glimmer of hope by saying that they could get their refund for accommodation.

However, the cost of flights from the United Kingdom to the United States would not be reimbursed.

The only realistic possibility of fixing this monumental error could be arranged at the American embassy in London where the couple hopes to book an appointment. Mr Stevenson is expected to go through a questioning session with the US officials.