B757 FLT CREW BELIEVES THEY WERE HOODWINKED INTO FLYING ACFT ON ETOPS ROUTE THAT WAS NOT ETOPS CAPABLE DUE TO MEL FOR EEC PRI FAIL.

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WHILE READING THE PAPERWORK WE DISCOVERED A WRITE-UP SIGNIFYING THAT THE R EEC PRIMARY FAILURE STATUS MESSAGE HAD OCCURRED WITH A DEFERRAL BEFORE THE PREVIOUS FLT. THIS MADE THE PLANE UNABLE TO FLY AN ETOPS LEG EVEN THOUGH THE CREW THAT BROUGHT IT INTO ZZZ HAD DONE SO. WHILE MAINT WAS LOOKING INTO THIS (THE CAPT WOULD NOT SIGN FOR THE ACFT UNTIL THIS WAS RECTIFIED) WE WAITED 1.5 HRS FOR A SOLUTION WITH THE PEOPLE ON BOARD PARKED AT THE GATE. MAINT THEN TOLD US THAT THE PREVIOUS WRITE-UP WAS ERRONEOUS BECAUSE AN INCORRECT CODE HAD BEEN ENTERED AND IN FACT ONLY AN AUTOTHROTTLE SERVO WAS INOP AND THAT THE R PRIMARY EEC WAS FINE. THEY CORRECTED THE PAPERWORK AND SIGNED THE ACFT OFF AS SAFE FOR FLT BACK TO ZZZ. THE FLT OVERWATER WAS UNEVENTFUL UNTIL WE GOT A R EEC PRIMARY STATUS MESSAGE. WE FELT AS IF WE WERE LIED TO CONCERNING THE PAPERWORK AND PREVIOUS WRITE-UP BECAUSE OF THIS. WE TOOK AN AIRPLANE THAT WAS IN FACT NOT ETOPS AIRWORTHY AS A RESULT OF MAINT MISLEADING US ON THE CONDITION OF THE AIRPLANE AND THE PAPERWORK. WE WOULD NEVER HAVE CONDUCTED AN OVERWATER FLT INTO ETOPS AIRSPACE IF WE HAD KNOWN THE ACTUAL STATUS OF THE AIRPLANE. MAINT REALLY DROPPED THE BALL ON THIS ONE.