Seamus Culleton, an Irishman detained by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) for five months, is facing deportation despite having a valid work permit and being married to an American citizen. His lawyer has described him as a “model immigrant” with no criminal record, while his case has drawn widespread attention amid heightened ICE activity across the United States.
It emerged on Thursday that a district court in New Ross, County Wexford, issued a warrant in April 2009 for Culleton’s arrest over the alleged possession of drugs for sale or supply the previous year. He also faced charges of obstructing a garda during a search by throwing 25 ecstasy tablets on the ground, according to the Irish Times.
Culleton, originally from County Kilkenny, entered the US in March 2009 on the visa waiver programme and overstayed the 90-day limit. After marrying Tiffany Smyth, a US citizen, he applied for lawful permanent residence and obtained a statutory exemption allowing him to work. His lawyer, Ogor Winnie Okoye, said the warrant was not a conviction and that her client would not have been aware of it.
In an RTE radio interview from a detention centre in El Paso, Texas, Culleton compared conditions there to a concentration camp and expressed fear for his safety. He appealed to the Irish government to raise his case with Donald Trump. Meanwhile, the US Department of Homeland Security said Culleton had received full due process, was issued a final removal order on September 10 2025, and chose to remain in ICE custody rather than be immediately deported.
