Tufts PhD student taken into custody and visa 'terminated,' school says

📆 3/27/2025 5:40 AM

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📆3/27/2025 5:40 AM

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Rumeysa Ozturk is a Turkish national, according to her lawyer, Mahsa Khanbabai.

Thursday, March 27, 2025 11:37AMA Tufts University PhD student on a visa was arrested by immigration authorities outside of Boston on Tuesday night, according to the school and the student's lawyer."Rumeysa Ozturk is a Turkish national who was maintaining valid F-1 status as a PhD student at Tufts University," Khanbabai said in a statement.

"Rumeysa was heading to meet with friends to break her Ramadan fast on the evening of March 25th when she was detained near her home in Somerville, MA by DHS agents." A Tufts University PhD student on a visa was arrested by immigration authorities outside of Boston on Tuesday night. "No charges have been filed against Rumeysa to date that we are aware of. I filed a habeas petition requesting that she not be moved out of the District of MA which was granted by Judge Talwani last night," according to her lawyer. In a statement to ABC News, a Department of Homeland Security spokesperson said: "Rumeysa Ozturk is a Turkish national and Tufts University graduate student, granted the privilege to be in this country on a visa. DHS and ICE investigations found Ozturk engaged in activities in support of Hamas, a foreign terrorist organization that relishes the killing of Americans. A visa is a privilege not a right. Glorifying and supporting terrorists who kill Americans is grounds for visa issuance to be terminated. This is commonsense security."Ozturk is listed in the ICE database as "in custody" and appears to be held at an ICE processing center in Basile, Louisiana. In a new statement to ABC News Wednesday evening, Khanbabai said she just learned "hours ago" that her client had been sent to Louisiana. "Over twenty-four hours after her arrest, Rumeysa has yet to be processed to her final detention facility and during this entire time, I have been unable to speak with my client," she said. On Tuesday a federal judge issued an order barring DHS from removing Ozturk from the District of Massachusetts without giving the court advanced notice. It's unclear when she was transferred to Louisiana. In an email to students on Tuesday, the school said it was informed that her visa status was "terminated," and is seeking to find out more information. "The university had no pre-knowledge of this incident and did not share any information with federal authorities prior to the event, and the location where this took place is not affiliated with Tufts University," the school wrote. "From what we have been told subsequently, the student's visa status has been terminated, and we seek to confirm whether that information is true. The university has no additional information at this time about the cause or circumstances of the student's apprehension and is attempting to learn more about the incident," it continued, in part. "Following university protocol, the Office of University Counsel will assist in connecting the student to external legal resources should the individual request our assistance," it added.Related Topics

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DHS apprehends Turkish Tufts University student accused of supporting terrorismDepartment of Homeland Security (DHS) officials arrested Rumeysa Ozturk, a Turkish PhD student at Tufts University.
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