Los Angeles, California (CNN) -- An American man detained last week in Pakistan while on a hunt for Osama bin Laden arrived back in the United States Wednesday afternoon and promptly proclaimed, "We gotta protect our own!"
Gary Faulkner arrived in Los Angeles on a flight from Dubai, after being released in Pakistan without charge.
While heading to a car with family members he made brief, rambling remarks to reporters.
"It's not about me," he said. "What this is about is the American people and the world. We can't let people like this scare us. We don't get scared by people like this, we scare them. And that's what this is about. We've gotta take care of business, and we will take care of business".
The 50-year-old Faulker, bearded and with his long, grey hair drawn in a ponytail, was wearing sandals, a long olive-drab shirt and fatigue-style pants. He brushed aside questions about whether he felt he ever got close to bin Laden.
Faulker, who has lived in Colorado for the past 40 years, was due to fly to Denver later. He spoke while heading to a hotel to spend some time with family members who flew in from Colorado to greet him.
