Update Feb. 28, 4:21 p.m.:
Our reporter Sarah Cwiek attended Yousef Ajin's hearing today.
BREAKING: Ann Arbor man Yousef Ajin will NOT be deported. Will be released from detention ASAP.
— Sarah Cwiek (@sarahcwiek) February 28, 2017
Ajin is legal permanent US resident. But had convictions for stealing, shoplifting (2001, 2003). Detained after routine ICE checkin Jan 30
— Sarah Cwiek (@sarahcwiek) February 28, 2017
Judge granted Ajin deportation waiver citing "suffering and extreme hardship to family." Has severely disabled son. Govt will not appeal.
— Sarah Cwiek (@sarahcwiek) February 28, 2017
Original post Feb. 27, 2:12 p.m.:
Community members around Ann Arbor are planning a show of support for Yousef Ajin this week. According to his family, Ajin was detained on January 30 after one of his routine check-ins with immigration officials.
People learned about Ajin's situation after Joel Apple-Kraut published a piece in the Community High School newspaper, The Communicator.
According to the piece, Ajin is a Muslim, Kuwait-born, Jordanian immigrant who has lived in the United States for 18 years. His wife and four kids are all U.S. citizens, and Ajin has been working toward citizenship while he lives and works in the U.S.
His family says Ajin has routinely checked in with immigration officials every other Monday, but during his check-in on January 30, Ajin was detained, and now faces deportation.
More from Apple-Kraut's piece in the Communicator:
Yousef’s check-ins are at 9:00 a.m. every other Monday, but it wasn’t until about noon on Jan. 30 that Ms. Omar, Yousef’s wife of 18 years, received a phone call. “When the officer called me, he said ‘You don’t have to get him a lawyer or anything, he will be okay. They just want to teach him a lesson,” Ms. Omar said. She quickly discovered this wasn’t the case, as Yousef was transferred to the Calhoun County Jail nearly 80 miles from Ann Arbor, where he will stay until his deportation hearing on Tuesday, Feb. 28, at 2:00 p.m. in the McNamara Federal Building in Detroit.
We reached out to U.S. Customs and Immigration officials for more details on Ajin's case. We'll update this post if we hear back.
Ajin's deportation hearing is Tuesday, Feb. 28, at 2 p.m. in the McNamara Federal Building in Detroit, according to The Communicator.
Ajin's daughter Betoul is a sophmore at Community High School. In the video below she talks about what life has been like without her dad.
"I felt sad that this could happen to a family that lived in America for so long. It scared me," says Betoul.
Ann Arbor Mayor Christopher Taylor share this Facebook post that includes details on how to support the Ajin family:
Organizers are planning to hold a rally at 1 p.m. outside the McNamara Federal Building in Detroit prior to Ajin's 2 p.m. hearing.
*This post was last updated at 2:49 p.m.
