Foreign
Nigerians self-deport amid Trump’s deadly ICE raids
Some Nigerians have gone into hiding and others are returning home secretly over the intensified deportation campaign led by President Donald Trump’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Many immigrants havr reportedly stopped going to work as Trump reiterated his support for ICE actions.
The sweeping actions, which include house-to-house enforcement raids, have stirred panic, debate and protest, particularly following a series of high-profile deadly incidents involving the federal immigration officers.
The US president kick-started an immigration policy to arrest and remove illegal immigrants immediately after he was inaugurated into office in January 2025,
However, his policy has been met with criticisms by many people in the US and other countries over the cruelty which ICE meted out to immigrants
People who spoke to Saturday PUNCH from the US, said some Nigerians had abandoned places of work and many were secretly returning to their home country.
ICE operations
At least 32 people died in ICE custody in 2025.
Last year is said to be the deadliest in over two decades for deaths in ICE detention.
The Guardian of UK reported that in 2026 alone, no fewer than eight people have died in interactions involving ICE.
The recent cases that have created anxieties were the murders of Renée Good and Alex Pretti.
There was outrage when 37-year-old Good was fatally shot by an ICE agent in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on January 7.
Reports reveal it happened during an enforcement operation, and the medical examiner ruled her death a homicide from multiple gunshot wounds.
Similarly, 37-year-old Pretti was shot and killed by the US federal immigration agents in Minneapolis on January 24, 2026, during a federal enforcement action.
ICE officials, in their operations, have gone from house to house, picking people to detain and deport, enforcing the immigration law of the Trump administration.
Reports say that about 70,000 people have been detained by the ICE officials since the crackdown began, while 540,000 immigrants were deported to their countries.
Immigrant decries raids
A Nigerian woman recently broke into tears in a viral video on Instagram, lamenting the panic and grief of immigrants in the US.
The woman said she was traumatised by the killing of Pretti, an intensive care nurse at Minneapolis VA Medical Center.
She said ICE agents killed any immigrants, whether they were US citizens or not.
“It is very traumatising the way these (ICE) people are treating immigrants,” she said. “President Trump, if you want the immigrants to leave America, tell us. Just come out and say, ‘All immigrants, we want you out, whether you are criminal or not.’”
“These (ICE) people don’t even care. There are a lot of immigrants who are treated like animals, and these people will be telling them, ‘we are citizens’, but they don’t care,” she added in the post which went viral.
While speaking with Saturday PUNCH, the woman, who asked to be identified as Senior Immigrant, said many Nigerians had resorted to online trading in order to earn a living due to the fear of the immigration agents.
She gave two instances.
Her shopkeeper, who had stopped coming to work since December, and a family for whom people contributed money to start a business after they stopped going to their factory work.
“My girl, who was working with me in my shop, stopped coming in mid-December. The reason was that she was scared for her life because ICE came to my area. The most unfortunate thing was that they came to her area in New Jersey. Since then, she has had anxiety and fear,” she said.
“People are staying indoors because of the fear of ICE. They get family support from those who work. Two weeks ago, someone called me to say that they were donating to support some families, and they requested that I contribute, which I did. That is where people are.
“Many people just stop working because they don’t have the criteria to work. The family I was talking about worked in a factory, and they stopped because of ICE. They started selling stuff from home.
“Another family cooks, and people start to come and pick it up from their house after they would have ordered online. There are many people with other serious experiences.”
Corroborating the senior immigrant’s explanation, the President of the Nigerian community in the State of Maryland, Mrs Chris Ademiluyi, said many immigrants had gone into hiding rather than returning to Nigeria.
Ademiluyi stated that despite the crackdown, the economic and security realities of Nigeria were not better.
“They are in hiding instead. Nigeria is not any better. Some people affected may want to talk anonymously, but they are not talking because of fear,” Ademiluyi said.
She added that her community supports Nigerian-Amerícans, and they were not mostly affected by the predicament.
Don’t bury yourself before death
Also, the Lead Pastor of the Lighthouse/Rejuvenation Church in Rosenberg Texas, Shola Adeoye, raised the alarm on Facebook that Nigerians were leaving the US.
The pastor said on Tuesday that Trump’s administration was forcing Nigerians to leave.
“Some Nigerians are moving back home due to fear of this administration. It’s not wise to bury yourself before death,” Adeoye said.
The post generated a lot of reactions on social media as Nigerians differed on the topic.
A Facebook user, Ben Ijeh, said, “Whoever that leaves involuntarily by ICE is not psychologically likely to want to come back in the future. The trauma will be too much to bear. God will always make a way for His own.”
“The way ICE agents capture people could be scary; they may not have the opportunity to get themselves together. So (it is) preferred to time their return home when they can control themselves,” Olukunle Durodolu, another Facebook user, said.
The family of Philip Ifeanyi Elobuike, an indigene of Eziama Village, Ebe, in Udi Local Government Area of Enugu State, has appealed to the public for assistance in locating him after his photograph surfaced on social media following nearly two years without contact.
Elobuike first travelled to the United States around 2004 and initially settled in the Los Angeles area of California. He later moved to Las Vegas, Nevada, before relocating to Dallas, Texas.
According to his family, Elobuike remained in contact with his relatives in Nigeria until around 2024, when communication with him suddenly stopped. Before losing contact, he was active on social media platforms, including Facebook and Instagram.
His family had continued searching for him, and on August 11, 2026, they were relieved when his photograph surfaced on social media. The picture provided them with at least some reassurance that he was alive.
Elobuike Philip
However, contrary to reports circulating in some media outlets and on social media, Elobuike has not been reunited with his family or located by his kinsmen in the United States.
His relatives and members of the Nigerian community reportedly spent the entire day on August 12 searching for him in different parts of Dallas but were unable to locate him.
The family is therefore appealing to members of the public, particularly Nigerians and other individuals in the Dallas area, to assist in locating Elobuike and ensuring that he is safely reunited with his family.
The family also urged people to disregard reports claiming that he has already been found and reunited with his relatives, describing such reports as inaccurate.
Anyone who has information about Elobuike’s whereabouts or comes across him is urged to contact any of the following:
Dr. Fred Ngwu: (214) 418-8145
Moses Onyejekwe: (213) 479-2340
Law Okolo: (646) 302-2597
The family expressed appreciation to everyone who has shared his photograph and appealed for continued circulation of the information until he is successfully located.
No fewer than 205 Nigerians were deported from Canada in June 2026 as Canadian authorities intensified enforcement of the country’s immigration laws, according to official figures released by the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA).
Immigration removal statistics published by the CBSA showed that 10,607 individuals were removed from Canada during the month, with Nigerians ranking among the top 10 nationalities affected by the exercise.
The figures indicate that Nigerians accounted for nearly two per cent of all removals carried out in June.
India recorded the highest number of deportations, with 3,323 nationals removed, followed by Mexico with 1,573. The United States accounted for 372 deportees, while Colombia and Romania recorded 354 and 293 removals respectively.
Other countries with significant numbers of nationals deported included Bangladesh, with 227, and Pakistan, with 207.
Explaining the rationale behind the removals, the CBSA said enforcing immigration laws was critical to protecting the integrity of Canada’s immigration system.
“Removing individuals who do not have the right to enter or stay in Canada is essential to maintaining the integrity of Canada’s immigration program and to ensuring fairness for those who come to this country lawfully,” the agency stated.
The latest figures underscore Canada’s continued enforcement against individuals found to have no legal right to remain in the country, as authorities seek to ensure compliance with the nation’s immigration laws.
The sentence was handed down on Friday by the US District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania after Adewale pleaded guilty to money laundering conspiracy and wire fraud.
Announcing the sentence in a statement on Friday, the US Attorney for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, David Metcalf, said Adewale was sentenced to 60 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release.
“United States Attorney David Metcalf announced that Afeez Olatunji Adewale, 27, of Nigeria was sentenced today by United States District Judge Joel Slomsky to 60 months in prison and three years of supervised release for money laundering conspiracy and wire fraud related to the sexual extortion and death of a young man in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania,” the statement read.
According to Metcalf, Adewale was arrested in Nigeria on August 17, 2023, during a joint operation involving the Federal Bureau of Investigation targeting sexual extortion suspects preying on victims in the United States.
Metcalf noted that the convict was extradited to the US in February 2026 with the assistance of the US authorities and the Nigerian government.
Following his extradition, Adewale was arraigned and subsequently pleaded guilty in April this year.
Commenting on the conviction, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Philadelphia, Wayne A. Jacobs, said the sentence demonstrates that offenders cannot escape justice by operating outside the United States.
“Today’s sentencing illustrates criminals cannot evade justice, even outside of our borders,” Jacobs said.
“This final sentencing is the result of diligent investigative work and close coordination with our domestic and international law enforcement partners.
“Most importantly, today’s sentence represents our continued commitment to seeking justice for victims and their loved ones. Let today’s sentencing send a clear message: alongside our partners here and abroad, the FBI remains committed to identifying, locating, and bringing to justice those who prey on our communities.”
Also reacting, the chief of the Abington Township Police Department, Patrick Molloy, praised the collaboration between local and federal authorities.
“We are grateful for the federal agents and prosecutors who worked so hard to bring those responsible for this heinous crime to justice.
“This could have been anyone’s child, and while this prosecution may provide some measure of relief, the pain and suffering for this family will never go away,” Molloy said.
The US authorities said Adewale was the last of three Nigerian suspects convicted in connection with the sextortion case.
His co-defendant, Samuel Abiodun, pleaded guilty to money laundering conspiracy and wire fraud and was sentenced to five years’ imprisonment in June 2025.
Another accomplice, Imoleayo Aina, also known as “Alice Dave,” pleaded guilty to cyberstalking, interstate threat to injure reputation, receiving proceeds of extortion, money laundering conspiracy, and wire fraud, and was sentenced to six years’ imprisonment in October 2025.
“I hope that their arrests, extradition, and prosecution make clear that the DOJ will go after those terrorising our young people — no matter where the scammers and sextortionists may be.
“Though this case is now closed, our thoughts will remain with a family and community forever changed,” Metcalf noted.
The administration of United States President Donald Trump has finalised a new rule limiting most foreign students and exchange visitors to a maximum stay of four years, unless they obtain an extension from the federal government, The Washington Post reported on Thursday.
The new regulation, announced by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), ends the long-standing “duration of status” policy, which allowed international students to remain in the United States for the length of their academic programmes, provided they complied with visa requirements.
The restriction applies to holders of F-1 student visas and J-1 exchange visitor visas.
According to The Washington Post, the DHS acknowledged concerns that some students may struggle to complete their academic programmes within the new timeframe, noting that many bachelor’s degree programmes take more than four years to complete, while doctoral programmes often require significantly longer.
Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin said the change was necessary to strengthen immigration enforcement and reduce visa overstays.
“For nearly half a century, the outdated ‘duration of status’ system has compromised national security and created an environment ripe for immigration fraud,” Mullin said.
The policy has drawn criticism from NAFSA: Association of International Educators, which described the move as unnecessary and warned that it would create uncertainty for international students.
“DHS’ decision to end Duration of Status is a misguided and unnecessary policy shift that injects uncertainty, bureaucracy, and fear into a system that has long worked effectively,” NAFSA Executive Director Fanta Aw said.
The new rule comes as many US colleges and universities continue to face challenges in attracting international students amid tighter immigration policies and visa restrictions introduced by the Trump administration.
A coroner’s court in the United Kingdom has ruled that a 27-year-old Nigerian woman, Beatrice Solomon, died by suicide after battling mental health challenges linked to personal difficulties.
Beatrice, who relocated from Nigeria to the UK on a skilled worker visa in November 2023, was found unresponsive in her home on Norris Road, Stanfield.
According to a report by The Sentinel on Sunday, the inquest heard that her husband, Damian Butler, had left home for his delivery job at about 4:30 pm on the day of the incident before returning approximately two hours later to use the toilet, where he discovered his wife unresponsive.
A police officer, PC Hinchliffe, told the court that emergency responders arrived shortly afterwards, but Beatrice was pronounced dead at the scene at 6:21pm.
According to the report, the investigators ruled out any third-party involvement in her death.
During the hearing, Butler told the court that his wife had struggled with her mental health over the past year, which he attributed to ongoing issues involving Stoke-on-Trent City Council.
He also disclosed that he later became aware that Beatrice had made two previous attempts to take her life.
“It is clear to me that Beatrice had researched and planned how to take her life. I can only extend my sincere condolences to Beatrice’s family and friends,” the coroner said.
Beatrice, who worked as a carer in the UK, is survived by her husband, a son, and her siblings.
This tragedy highlights the emotional and mental health challenges some migrants may face while adjusting to life in a new country.
According to the World Health Organisation, research from various countries has shown that some migrants face increased mental health risks due to factors such as separation from their families, financial stress, uncertainty, discrimination, and cultural barriers.
The WHO stated that the findings underscore the need for accessible mental health support and timely interventions for migrants experiencing psychological distress.
-
Entertainment4 days agoPeller’s ₦400m Abuja Mansion Allegedly Built on Disputed Land
-
Crime5 days agoEkwulobia Suspends New Yam Festival Over Kidnap of Jesco Oil CEO
-
Crime5 days agoNDLEA Arrests Italy-Based Businessman After Ingesting 98 Cocaine Wraps in Enugu
-
Crime3 days agoEnugu Church Attack: Security Forces Rescue Seminarian, Arrest Three Suspected Kidnappers
-
Politics4 days agoOld Rivalry Returns as Ekwunife Emerges APC Anambra Central Senatorial Candidate
-
Crime4 days agoAgunechemba Closes In On Kidnappers Of Anambra Billionaire, Jesco CEO Joseph Eze Okafor
-
Crime4 days agoCustoms Seizes 399 Jojef Firearms, Rifle Parts at Tin Can Island Port
-
Crime4 days agoEzza Women Stage Overnight Traditional Protest, Give Politicians Seven-Day Ultimatum Over Violence