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 line with the college, which mentioned it’s “deeply involved” concerning the matter.
Based on 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 is going to stay in ICE custody pending removing proceedings,” the DHS spokesperson mentioned.
Fatima Ameaka, seen on this photograph offered by Johns Hopkins College, is a researcher on the Maryland college.
Johns Hopkins Bloomberg Faculty of Public Well being
Based on 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 worry and concern this instills in members of our group. Dr. Ameaka was touring in a private capability, and although we can not touch upon the specifics of her state of affairs, we need to guarantee our group that the college is actively working to offer assist 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 Middle 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 find out how to enhance responses to infections illness outbreaks resembling measles.
“She is an incredible particular person, she is absolutely good. She’s dedicated and he or she 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 presently being held on the Alexandria Staging Facility in Louisiana, in line with her legal professional.
A GoFundMe web page has been set as much as assist together with her authorized protection.
