A 64-year-old woman, a resident of California for almost three decades, was arrested during a routine appointment with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Her name is Masuma Khan, and her story, marked by years of failed attempts to regularize her status, has sparked a wave of criticism against the US immigration system.

According to Newsweek and ABC7 Los Angeles, Khan went to the ICE offices for her annual check-in on October 6. For years, she had completed this requirement without incident, but on this occasion, agents notified her that there was an active deportation order and proceeded to detain her on the spot.

A routine appointment that ended in detention

According to testimonies collected by Newsweek, Masuma showed up accompanied by family members for her routine check-in. The appointment, which seemed like just another formality, turned into an unexpected detention when an agent confronted her with a court order that, according to authorities, had gone unfulfilled for years.

After being notified, she was transferred to the California City Correctional Facility, where she remains in custody.

Her daughter, Riya Khan, explained to the same outlet that her mother did not receive the necessary medication to treat her blood pressure, thyroid, and eye problems during the first days of arrest. She claims that, despite her insistence to the center's staff, the medications were delivered late, which worsened her health condition.

The version of the immigration authorities

The Undersecretary of Homeland Security, Tricia McLaughlin, told Newsweek that Khan has a final deportation order issued by a judge on two occasions: once in 1999 and again in 2018. According to her, the woman filed multiple appeals and appeals that were rejected by both the Board of Immigration Appeals and the Ninth Circuit.

Despite this, family members and local legislators question the proportionality of the arrest. Congresswoman Judy Chu assured KABC that the case is under review and that both she and Senator Adam Schiff are seeking a hearing for her release on bail.

A life marked by bureaucratic errors and immigration scams

Masuma Khan arrived in the United States in 1997 with a temporary visa during a family visit. Her daughter, who was suffering from kidney failure at the time, needed to remain in the country for dialysis for more than three years, which led the mother to overstay her welcome.

Years later, her husband managed to obtain permanent residency and later US citizenship, which began a legal process to regularize Masuma's status.

However, her case became complicated when, according to her daughter, a man approached her at a store and promised to help her get a green card. The individual allegedly submitted an asylum application under a false identity, without informing her that she had to appear before a judge. When the case was rejected, he disappeared. This incident ultimately complicated her immigration history and contributed to the deportation order that currently keeps her detained.

Years of Attempts and an Uncertain Future

For more than two decades, the Khan family tried to regularize Masuma's status through lawyers and family applications. In 2015, her husband submitted a new residency petition, but it was rejected due to inconsistencies stemming from the aliases he had used years earlier. In 2020, ICE briefly detained her at her workplace and released her shortly after finding no criminal record.

Today, her family insists that the goal is to achieve her humanitarian release and correct a process they consider unfair.