Feds Grab 77-Year-Old Louisiana Grandfather Days After Judge Orders Him Freed

Federal immigration agents seized Akram Mahmoud Omar, a 77-year-old Palestinian grandfather and longtime U.S. resident, just days after a federal judge ordered his release from custody in Louisiana. A Baton Rouge judge had ruled that his detention at Camp 57 was unlawful following a heart attack he suffered behind bars. Yet on June 8, according to his attorney, Immigration and Customs Enforcement showed up at his home again and began moving to place him on a deportation flight the very next day. Omar’s lawyer rushed an emergency motion into court, and the judge again ordered Omar released.

According to Louisiana Illuminator, Omar was first picked up by ICE during what was supposed to be a routine check-in on Oct. 28, 2025, then transferred to Camp 57, the immigration unit inside the Louisiana State Penitentiary at Angola. While there, he suffered a heart attack and underwent open-heart surgery. U.S. District Judge Brian Jackson concluded in a May 29 order that ICE had violated Omar’s constitutional rights and ordered him freed, with the Illuminator report drawing on court filings and Omar’s habeas petition to lay out how the case unfolded.

On June 8, ICE agents returned to Omar’s home. Lawyers say they were told it was another routine check-in, only to learn hours later that Omar had been taken to an ICE staging area and booked on a roughly 14-hour deportation flight, according to The Lens. ICE spokesperson Angela Vicknair told The Lens in a statement, “ICE complies with all court orders, and any allegation that a judge’s orders were not followed are categorically false.” Omar’s attorney, Ken Mayeaux, responded in court with an emergency motion accusing the agency of misleading the family and rushing to deport a medically fragile man.

What The Judge Actually Ordered

Judge Brian Jackson’s May 29 order, as detailed by Louisiana Illuminator, laid out specific conditions for any attempt to deport Omar. ICE, the judge said, had to provide advance notice, explain the reason for removal, offer time for an orderly departure and conduct an informal interview before moving ahead. Jackson found that ICE had not shown that deportation was imminent and ruled that denying Omar time to arrange his medical care and personal affairs violated his due process rights.

Camp 57 And How This Fight Started

Camp 57, the ICE processing center carved out of Angola prison, has been controversial since it opened in 2025. As reported by Axios New Orleans, Louisiana’s contract brings in roughly $949,000 a month in federal reimbursements to house immigration detainees at Angola. Local outlets have closely watched the legal battles around the site. Earlier this year, Verite News New Orleans reported on a February court order that freed four men after a judge found their re-detention at Camp 57 unlawful.

Legal Fallout And What Comes Next

Omar’s emergency motion argues that ICE “lied to Mr. Omar and his family” about when he needed to report and then tried to move him out of the country within hours, according to The Lens. In response, the court’s June 8 order again demanded that Omar be released immediately and barred ICE from re-detaining or removing him while the motion is pending. Lawyers who follow detention litigation say the case could lead to additional hearings over how ICE uses re-detention and how medical clearances are handled for detainees at Angola.

Immigrant-rights advocates say Omar’s ordeal is part of a bigger legal push over ICE’s practice of re-detaining people after judges have already ordered them released. The National Immigration Project has highlighted similar court victories earlier this year involving people who were unlawfully re-detained. As filings stack up, judges will be asked to spell out just how strictly ICE must follow judicial orders when tight timelines, serious health concerns and the basic logistics of arranging an orderly departure all collide.