A Johns Hopkins College researcher, initially from Cameroon, was detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers at Baltimore Washington Worldwide Airport earlier this week, in response to the college, which mentioned it’s “deeply involved” in regards to the matter.
In keeping with a DHS spokesperson, ICE brokers arrested Fatima Ameaka, a Cameroonian nationwide on the airport on Tuesday. The spokesperson mentioned Ameaka overstayed a visa that expired June 13, 2024.
“In violation of our nation’s legal guidelines, she overstayed her visa. She’s going to stay in ICE custody pending elimination proceedings,” the DHS spokesperson mentioned.
Fatima Ameaka, seen on this photograph supplied by Johns Hopkins College, is a researcher on the Maryland college.
Johns Hopkins Bloomberg Faculty of Public Well being
In keeping with paperwork obtained by ABC Information, Ameaka had a piece authorization allow till 2029 and a pending asylum case.
Johns Hopkins mentioned Ameaka, who has a doctoral diploma in pharmacy, is an worker on the Bloomberg Faculty of Public Well being and is “a revered member of our group.”
“The college understands the concern and concern this instills in members of our group. Dr. Ameaka was touring in a private capability, and although we can’t touch upon the specifics of her scenario, we need to guarantee our group that the college is actively working to offer help for Dr. Ameaka, together with making certain she has entry to authorized illustration,” a Johns Hopkins spokesperson mentioned.
Vacationers enter the road for safety with TSA PreCheck at Baltimore/Washington Worldwide Thurgood Marshall Airport in Baltimore, Thursday, March 19, 2026.
Stephanie Scarbrough/AP
Ameaka’s arrest comes days after ABC Information obtained a memo detailing federal immigration authorities’ new efforts to ramp up arrests at airports of people that have allegedly overstayed their visas.
Dr. Tom Inglesby, the director of the Heart for Well being Safety at Johns Hopkins Faculty of Public Well being, the place Ameaka works, mentioned she attended the college as a Fulbright Scholar and started working with the middle two years in the past, specializing in researching the best way to enhance responses to infections illness outbreaks comparable to measles.
“She is an incredible particular person, she is absolutely good. She’s dedicated and she or he is humorous,” Dr. Inglesby mentioned in an interview.
“She’s a beloved colleague at our heart,” he mentioned.
Inglesby mentioned her household and legal professionals have been unable to succeed in her.
Ameaka is at present being held on the Alexandria Staging Facility in Louisiana, in response to her legal professional.
A GoFundMe web page has been set as much as assist along with her authorized protection.
