BOSTON (WHDH) - An Iranian Northeastern University student who was detained Sunday night by U.S. Customs and Border Protection was deported despite a judge ordering he stay in the United States for a hearing Tuesday morning, attorneys said.
Shahab Dehghani, an Iranian citizen and Northeastern student, landed at Logan Airport for his spring semester when he was detained for an unknown reason, according to his attorneys. He had reportedly undergone an extensive vetting process to attain a student visa.
His attorneys filed an emergency motion and were granted a hearing scheduled for 10 a.m. Tuesday in the Moakley Federal Courthouse.
Judge Richard Stearns presided over the hearing, where Dehghani’s attorneys said Sen. Edward J. Markey determined that a jet carrying the 24-year-old student took off at 10:03 p.m., just a half-hour after Judge Allison D. Burroughs gave an order that he remain in the United States pending the hearing.
His attorneys added during the hearing that Dehghani was not yet in Iran but in Paris for a layover.
Stearns said he has no authority to order Dehghani back and adjourned the hearing.
One of Dehghani’s attorneys, Kerry Doyle, said she was disappointed by the hearing.
“Judge Stearns didn’t feel he could rule on that issue, so we intend to pursue it with Judge Burroughs,” she said. “We feel this is a pattern of Customs and Border Protection ignoring court orders and ignoring the law.”
His attorneys added that Dehghani has no extremist views, with attorney Heather Yountz saying Dehghani is “understandably upset.”
“He’s a student; he’s been a student here in Massachusetts for a period of time, for two years,” she continued. “He was planning on returning to Northeastern. His life has now been turned around because of this decision.”
There has been no comment from federal officials as to why he was deported.
Protesters gathered outside of the courthouse, shouting, “Do the right thing. Let Shahab in.”
They also congregated at the airport Monday night, calling for Dehghani’s release following his detainment.
Since August 2019, at least 10 students have been sent back to Iran upon arriving at U.S. airports, according to the American Civil Liberties Union of Massachusetts. Seven of those 10 students had reportedly flown into Logan Airport.
Carol Rose, executive director at the ACLU of Massachusetts, released a statement that read, “In America, nobody is above the law—including Customs and Border Protection officials. Given the Trump administration’s xenophobic policies and CBP’s troubling practice at Logan Airport of sending students with valid visas back to Iran, it is shameful that the government defied a federal court order and deported Shahab without due process. We are looking at all options to hold CBP accountable for wrongfully deporting Iranians and other students who hold valid visas.”
This is a developing story; stay with 7NEWS on-air and online for the latest updates.
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