U.S. immigration authorities detained a Johns Hopkins University researcher at a Baltimore-area airport as she prepared to board a domestic flight, amid reports of a sharp rise in immigration arrests at airports across the country.
Fatima Ameaka, a Cameroonian national employed by the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, was arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers at Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport, the Department of Homeland Security said on Friday.
According to DHS, Ameaka remained in the United States after her visa expired in June 2024. She will remain in ICE custody while removal proceedings are carried out.
Johns Hopkins University described Ameaka as a respected member of its academic community and said it was arranging assistance for her.
Immigration lawyers say enforcement operations at U.S. airports have increased in recent weeks, particularly targeting foreign nationals accused of overstaying temporary visas.
Some of those detained reportedly have pending asylum claims, marriage-based immigration applications or other unresolved legal proceedings.
U.S. media reports said the arrests appeared to reflect an expanded information-sharing arrangement between ICE and the Transportation Security Administration, which screens passengers at airports.
The number of people who remain in the United States after temporary visas expire reaches hundreds of thousands each year, according to government data.
The airport arrests form part of a broader immigration enforcement campaign under President Donald Trump, whose administration has intensified efforts to identify and deport people without valid immigration status.