[mattlondon]

I think the "worst case" won't just be losing the phone. Do you think they'll get to the stage of keeping your phone but then let you walk out the airport as if nothing happened?! You will have just had a serious, high-risk, and unpleasant altercation with the border officials they're not going to let you just leave without any further action. You'll very likely have your phone taken away while you are detained for "further enquiries" because your actions have just given them totally justified reason to suspect you're worth investigating further.

You may not be convicted for obstruction in the end but wow they will make things horrible for you right up until the court case is dropped at the last minute.

From that point on, every further interaction you have with any officer or official is another high-stakes situation for you where they will be looking to build up a case against you. Every word you say, every slip of the tongue in the interrogation room, the prison van, the holding cell at the station, your complaint at the cuffs being too tight, about needing to go to the bathroom, etc it's all being recorded and used by THEM to paint a picture of THEIR CHOOSING about YOU and build a case against YOU. They are actively trying to trip you up and get you to say/admit/confess to anything and they are professionals who are highly practiced at this and I assume - with respect - that you are not trained to withstand hostile interrogation and incarceration, even for short periods of time while they "straighten things out down at the station".

If you are in that situation I highly recommend you REFUSE to saying a single thing to anyone without legal representation (assuming that is even an option in the country where you decide to be a jerk) because they're out to get you for something, even if not the original thing they took you in for. Be extremely careful about what you say without legal representation.

Good luck on your next flight. Remember that there are different counties at both ends of an international flight and the laws are different in different countries - the laws you are used to at home don't apply elsewhere.