Detained at BWI Airport During Personal Travel… Transferred to Louisiana Detention Center
Former Fulbright Scholar… DHS: "Overstayed Visa, Unlawful Presence"
University and Civil Rights Groups Push Back Against "Excessive Enforcement"… Legal Defense Fundraising Begins
[
A promising public health researcher at Johns Hopkins University has been arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) while attempting to board a domestic flight, causing widespread shock and backlash.
According to a report by the Baltimore Sun on the 31st, Dr. Fatima Ameaka, a researcher at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, was detained by ICE agents this week while boarding a domestic flight at Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport (BWI) for personal travel.
It has been confirmed that Dr. Ameaka was transferred to an ICE detention facility in southern Louisiana and is currently undergoing deportation proceedings.
A spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) stated the reason for her arrest, saying, "Ameaka, a Cameroonian national, entered the country on a visa on June 27, 2023, and her authorized period of stay was until June 13, 2024. She remained in the country after her visa expired and is currently detained for removal proceedings."
Dr. Ameaka, who earned a Doctorate in Pharmacy from the University of Yaoundé in Cameroon, was selected as a Fulbright Scholar and received a Master of Public Health degree from Johns Hopkins University in 2024. She subsequently served as a researcher at the university, engaging in academic activities such as publishing research papers on infectious disease outbreak response and prevention.
Following news of the arrest, university officials and local human rights organizations immediately voiced strong pushback.
In a statement, a spokesperson for Johns Hopkins University said, "We express deep concern over the news of the detention of Dr. Ameaka, a respected member of our university community. We are actively working to provide necessary legal support, including securing legal representation."
Zainab Chaudry, director of the Maryland office of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), also strongly criticized the action, stating, "Ambushing and detaining immigrants at the airport who pose no threat to public safety for long periods is cruel and violates human rights and due process." Colleagues and acquaintances of Dr. Ameaka have launched an online GoFundMe fundraising campaign to cover her legal expenses.
This incident comes at a time when the Trump administration has significantly stepped up immigration enforcement across the country, including at airports. DHS has reversed its previous policy that allowed undocumented immigrants to board domestic flights after verifying their identity, and is now heightening enforcement inside airports.
DHS maintained a firm stance, warning, "We are offering opportunities for voluntary departure through a voluntary return app (CBP Home), and those who fail to comply will be arrested and barred from future re-entry into the United States."