Sister Leticia Ugboaja, a 56-year-old nun and nurse, held a news conference in McAllen, Texas, to discuss her detention by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers on June 28. She described the moment armed officers approached her while she walked to Sunday Mass in her religious habit, saying she initially did not understand what was happening.
According to her attorney, Carlos M. Garcia, Ugboaja had been granted protection from removal to her native Nigeria by an immigration judge in 2019 after her asylum application was denied. The judge determined she would likely face torture if returned to Nigeria. Garcia stated that Ugboaja, who works as a nurse, had complied with all legal requirements and possessed authorization to work in the United States.
Ugboaja was released several hours after her detention, following attention generated when parish officials posted about the incident on social media and members of Congress intervened on her behalf. However, her attorney noted that ICE did not provide clear explanation for her detention and indicated the government had planned to remove her to a third country. Ugboaja expressed particular distress at being prevented from attending Mass and receiving Holy Communion, describing this as “very, very heartbreaking” given her role as a nun.
Ugboaja stated she decided to speak publicly to advocate for others in similar circumstances, emphasizing that many individuals granted legal protections have followed all required procedures yet continue to face uncertainty. She called for people to be afforded the opportunity to be heard before being taken into custody. Her case occurs during a period when the Trump administration has implemented immigration enforcement policies that critics and human rights organizations have characterized as unusually aggressive. DHS and ICE did not respond to requests for comment regarding her detention.
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