A better timeline

March 30:
Berg's father waits at JFK airport in New York for his son, who does not show up.

March 31:
The FBI tells the Berg family that Nicholas had been picked up by Iraqi police in Mosul and transferred to U.S. authority. A coalition spokesman said on May 12 that Berg was never in U.S. custody, but was detained by Iraqi policemen, who thought Berg was involved in suspicious activities. The FBI visited Berg three times while he was in detention and determined he was not involved with criminal or terrorist activities, said the spokesman.

April 5:
The Berg family sues Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld and the Defense Department for holding their son without merit.

April 6:
Berg is released from custody, and the lawsuit is abandoned.

April 9:
Berg disappears shortly after telling his parents he would try to leave Iraq as soon as possible.

May 8:
Berg's body is found by an Army patrol on a roadside near Baghdad, and his parents are informed soon after.

May 11:
The videotaped beheading of Nicholas Berg is posted on an al Qaeda-linked Web site.