US5 min(s) read
Published 10:41 17 Apr 2026 GMT
A gay adult film star has claimed he was detained for hours and ultimately handed a 10-year ban from the United States.
Milo Miles, who is from Canada, was travelling from Toronto’s Pearson Airport to Las Vegas in January when he was stopped by US Customs, where travellers are screened before departure.
What started as a routine check quickly turned into a lengthy interrogation focused heavily on his sexuality and profession.
"It was the worst and most painful day of my life," Miles told LGBTQ Nation. "I was subjected to derogatory comments, with an unsettling focus on my sexual orientation and my sex life."
“All of this happened on two hours of sleep. I was starving, dehydrated, and in a state of complete exhaustion. I was treated like a criminal despite having done nothing wrong. I felt coerced, manipulated, and powerless. I am devastated," he added.
Miles said he was interrogated for around two hours before being sent home, causing him to miss his flight.
When he returned the next day, he was flagged again and questioned for several more hours, during which agents searched his devices and uncovered evidence of his work in the adult film industry.
"This officer decided to be a lot more thorough with his search and interrogation," he said. "After about two hours of intense interrogation, he found evidence that I do porn on my personal phone. Then, over the next two hours found evidence of escorting on my other phone."
Miles said officials did not find any evidence of prostitution, but did find his texts with former escorting clients - for whom he usually provides a boyfriend experience - as well as recent messages in which he was attempting to arrange plans with a client in Las Vegas.
"Escorting is an exchange of money for time spent with an individual," he explained. "For example, most of my clients are looking for 'the boyfriend' experience. Or someone to go to dinner with. Prostitution is an exchange of money for sexual services. There was never any evidence of prostitution on my phone, only escorting," he added.
However, a spokesperson for Customs and Border Patrol told The Independent that Miles "admitted to a CBP officer he received payment for engaging in prostitution in the United States - a crime - while in the United States, he was denied entry into our country."
The agency also stated: "All aliens entering the US are subject to inspection under federal law. CBP may deny aliens entry into the U.S. for violating our nation’s laws."
Miles had been travelling to attend the GayVN Awards, where he was nominated for six awards and scheduled to present.
Despite the ordeal, he later won one of the awards. He had also planned to travel to Florida to visit his partner after the event.
The ban has had major consequences for both his career and personal life, as he films much of his content in the United States.
"I was planning on building a life in the United States with my [future] husband, with my partner, who's American," he said.
He also described feeling targeted beyond just his profession. "This is coming from someone who came to Canada as a refugee, who witnessed his first shooting when he was six years old, who witnessed a plane crash when he was seven years old, who has had immediate family be the victims of gun violence in the past, and who thought that was all behind me," he said.
"Now to think that I'm still being targeted because of my skin color, because of my ethnicity, because is the most disheartening thing that I've had to experience," he added.
Miles added that he felt pressured during questioning and eventually confessed to the officer’s definition of prostitution and unauthorized employment, despite maintaining that his work did not involve sexual services.
He also claimed he was not offered legal representation and believes the decision to impose a 10-year ban may have been made by a single officer.
According to Canadian sex worker support organisation Maggie’s, US Customs has the authority to deny entry to individuals they believe are involved in sex work, even without a conviction, and may use coercive tactics during questioning.
Miles believes he may have been flagged due to facial recognition software and warned others about traveling to the United States.
"Avoid the United States at all costs. It’s not worth it. It’s not worth it to put your life at risk," he said.
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