A 31-year-old Danish national who was going through the naturalization process after living in the U.S. for more than 10 years was detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials during a routine appointment to finalize his citizenship, according to multiple media reports.
Kasper Eriksen, a green card holder with no criminal record, works as a welder in Sturgis, Mississippi, where he lives with his wife and four children. On April 15, he was unexpectedly taken into custody and later transferred to the LaSalle Detention Center in Louisiana, Newsweek reported.
The 31-year-old, according to his wife, Savannah Hobart Eriksen, first moved to the U.S. as an exchange student in 2009 and returned to Denmark.
He returned to the U.S. legally in 2013 after he and his wife married and he began the legal process of becoming an American citizen. In September 2024, according to the outlet, the Eriksens received word that his application was under review, and, on March 7, an interview for his naturalization application was scheduled.
ICE officials reportedly detained the 31-year-old for failing to file a single document, due in 2015, around the same time the couple lost their first child in a stillbirth. While grieving their loss, they forgot to file Form I-751, the Mississippi Free Press reported.
If he needed to file an I-751 in 2015, then he received only a 2-year green card “with conditions” in 2013. I-751 is the “Removal of Conditions” filing.
So he’s been wandering around the U.S. for the last 9-10 years with an expired Green Card? It never occurred to him that something was amiss?
If he had filed everything on time and followed up as appropriate, he should have been a citizen by 2019 — about 6 years ago.
There must be more to this story. Given the current regime in Washington and its focus on deportation counts, that might not matter much. 🙁
Father of 4 detained by ICE at citizenship interview after living in US for 12 years
A 31-year-old Danish national with no criminal record who has been living in the U.S. for more than 10 years was detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials during a routine app…
https://www.kron4.com/news/national/father-of-4-detained-by-ice-at-citizenship-interview-after-living-in-us-for-12-years/amp
