A South Bay couple seeking asylum says their quiet apartment turned into a federal interrogation site less than a week after U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran, when Department of Homeland Security agents showed up at their door, detained the husband and grilled his eight-months-pregnant wife for hours.
The husband says agents handcuffed and shackled him before Immigration and Customs Enforcement took him to a detention center in California City, where he spent three weeks until an immigration judge granted his release on bond. The couple had arrived on tourist visas in November 2024 and filed asylum claims after deciding it was no longer safe to return to Iran.
What the couple says happened
According to NBC Bay Area, agents appeared at the couple’s apartment just as the husband was leaving for work, put him in handcuffs and drove him away while his wife was left to face questioning alone.
The wife told NBC Bay Area that agents pressed her on Iran, including her views on Israel, and kept at it for hours. She later suffered a panic attack, and doctors informed her that the pregnancy was now considered high-risk. Their attorney said the questions zeroed in on whether the couple had any ties to the Iranian government.
Harsh welcome at California City
When the husband arrived at the immigration detention facility in California City, a converted prison in the high desert, another detainee greeted him with three chilling words: "Welcome to hell," according to Paris Etemadi Scott, legal director of the Pars Equality Center, who spoke with NBC Bay Area.
Scott and the family's lawyers quickly filed a motion requesting a bond hearing. They argued that the husband qualifies for asylum, has no criminal record and should be protected under the Convention Against Torture. After three weeks in custody, an immigration judge agreed to release him on bond while his case moves forward.
A broader pattern of enforcement
Their story is landing in the middle of a sharp spike in immigration enforcement against Iranians inside the United States.
Data compiled by the Deportation Data Project shows arrests of Iranian nationals rose steeply in 2025 and early 2026. The project reports roughly 530 arrests of Iranians during the first 13 months of the current administration, including more than 150 in a single week after the June 2025 attacks on Iran's nuclear sites.
That stands in stark contrast to about 75 arrests during the final 13 months of the Biden administration, a shift the project links to more street arrests and fewer releases. Advocates say the numbers have rippled through Iranian communities, stoking fear among students, asylum seekers and even green card holders who are now finding themselves questioned about their country of origin.
What the law means for asylum seekers
On paper, filing an asylum application starts a formal legal process. In practice, it does not automatically give someone lawful immigration status or protect them from being locked up.
As USCIS explains, people with pending asylum claims can still be detained and must often turn to bond hearings or immigration judges if they want to be released while their cases are decided. The couple's lawyers argue the husband fits squarely in that category, saying he has no criminal history and fears torture if returned to Iran.
Conditions at California City draw criticism
California City, a former state prison reopened under contract with ICE and run by a private company, now holds more than 1,400 people and has come under fire from lawmakers.
According to CalMatters, senators and state officials have criticized conditions at the facility, including medical care and sanitation. Advocates say the remote, prison-like setting makes it harder for detainees to get lawyers and for families to visit, all while immigration cases drag on.
For now, the couple is back together at home, waiting. They say the fear of another knock at the door hangs over their days, even as they prepare for the birth of their child. Their next immigration hearing will determine whether he can stay in the United States.
Legal groups and community advocates say they are not done pushing. They want more transparency about who is picked up in interior enforcement and stronger limits on arrests that, in their view, track geopolitics more than individual criminal records.
