US immigration authorities have deported former Indianapolis Colts linebacker Daniel Adongo after accusing the Kenyan national of overstaying his visa and citing a series of arrests and criminal convictions.
US Immigration and Customs Enforcement said Adongo, 37, was removed from the country on 20 June after being ordered to leave the United States on 23 March.
Adongo, who played for the Colts between 2013 and 2015, reportedly overstayed his visa in 2016, a year after his NFL career ended.
“Those who violate immigration law are held equally accountable, including former professional athletes,” Douglas Thompson, an assistant field office director with ICE Chicago, said in a statement.
ICE described Adongo as a “dangerous individual” and said his removal had made the community safer.
The former player has not publicly commented on the allegations, and US authorities did not specify where he was deported to.
Adongo attracted international attention in 2013 when he moved to the United States and switched from professional rugby to American football, despite having no previous experience in the sport.
According to ICE, he was arrested several times over the past decade on allegations including felony intimidation, battery and disorderly conduct.
His life after leaving the NFL was also marked by mental health difficulties and periods of psychiatric treatment, according to the Indianapolis Star.
His mother and lawyers have previously said he suffered from mental illness and physical injuries that may have been connected to his sporting career.
In 2017, after Adongo was charged with intimidation and criminal mischief, a judge ordered a psychiatric assessment to determine whether he was competent to stand trial. He was subsequently ruled incompetent and admitted to a psychiatric hospital.
Court proceedings were delayed several times after further assessments reportedly found that he remained unable to stand trial.
In 2020, Adongo was convicted of criminal mischief causing damage and sentenced to 364 days in prison, ICE said.
The agency said his most recent charges also fell under the Laken Riley Act, which requires the detention of undocumented migrants accused of certain theft-related or violent offences while their cases are pending.
The legislation was signed into law by US President Donald Trump on 29 January 2025 and was named after Laken Riley, a nursing student from Georgia who was murdered by a Venezuelan national in 2024.
More than 40 Kenyan nationals have been arrested by ICE, according to figures published by the US Department of Homeland Security.