Al Qaeda Suspect 'Normal Aussie Kid'

A young Sydney man falsely linked to al-Qaeda was just a "normal Aussie kid" caught in the US with a fake ID, his lawyer said today.

Adam John Hart, 20, was arrested at a military tourist site in Texas on July 11 and has remained in a Houston jail since, despite being granted bail.

Hart's lawyer, Bill Stradley, said today his client only planned to use his fake ID to buy alcohol and enter bars during a US holiday.

Hart had glued a photo of himself on a Ugandan passport a friend had given him at a hostel in San Francisco, according to Stradley.

The legal drinking age in Texas and most American states is 21.

"He got the bright idea that he can use this passport to get into bars if he glued his own picture on it," Stradley told AAP.

Hart was arrested on July 11 at the San Jacinto Monument and the Battleship Texas State Historical Site.

The Harris County Sheriff's Department said Hart had refused to leave the park and when they searched him they discovered the fake passport.

The tourist sites, because of their military nature, have been under heavy security surveillance since the September 11 terrorist attacks.

Hart was charged with forgery and has remained in a Texan jail since his arrest.

A report earlier this week in The Canberra Times newspaper alleged Hart had links to al-Qaeda, but US and Australian authorities have since confirmed there was no link.

"It is completely wrong," Stradley said of the al-Qaeda allegations.

"Authorities were extremely cautious and questioned him greatly and I understand the FBI and federal authorities were completely satisfied he was just a kid on holiday with a fake ID so he could get into bars."

The lawyer said Hart is a snowboarding fanatic who worked for six months on the Whistler snowfields in Canada.

After his Whistler working holiday was over, Hart bought a car in Canada and embarked on a driving sightseeing tour of the US.

While staying in a hostel in San Francisco a friend of Hart's gave him a passport of a Ugandan citizen named Farouk Kigozi, the lawyer said.

Because Hart was only 20 and the age on the Ugandan passport was over 21, Hart decided to glue a photo of himself on top of the picture already in the passport.

Stradley described Hart's poorly constructed fake ID as "the most unfortunate one ever".

Hart appeared briefly in a Houston court this morning but the matter was adjourned to August 1.

A judge has granted Hart a $US5,000 ($A9,000) bond and in normal circumstances he would only have to come up with 10 per cent of that amount to be released from the Harris County Jail.

But because Hart is not an American citizen, US immigration authorities "have placed a hold on his ability to get out on bond", Stradley said.

Texan jails are regarded as some of the worst in the US, but Stradley said Hart appeared to be coping well.

"I have a lot of clients and I am generally a pretty good judge of whether they are doing well in jail and I sense that he's a strong kid," Stradley said.

"He's obviously distraught but he's handling it very well and just can't believe his bad luck."

Hart's father, who is presently in London on business, has been in regular contact with the lawyer and will soon travel to Houston to be with his son.

"He's a really nice kid from a loving family in Australia," Stradley said.

A spokeswoman from the Harris County District Attorney's office said she could not comment on the matter other than: "The case was in court today but it was re-set for August 1."