Tufts University Shows Support For Student Detained By ICE: Report

MEDFORD, MA — Tufts University has expressed its support for a graduate student who was detained by Immigration Customs and Enforcement earlier this month, according to a report from WBZ News.

30-year-old Rumesya Ozturk was detained near her off-campus home on Tuesday, March 26 while on her way to meet with friends. Surveillance video shows multiple masked people approaching Ozturk before handcuffing and walking her toward an unmarked vehicle. According to Ozturk’s attorney Mahsa Khanbabai, her client had a valid visa as a PhD student.

Tufts President Sunil Kumar asked for Ozturk’s immediate release in court documents. According to Kumar, Ozturk’s record Student and Exchange Visitor Information System was satisfactory until just after her detainment. It was later updated to note Ozturk’s visa had been terminated.

“The University has no information to support the allegations that she was engaged in activities at Tufts that warrant her arrest and detention," Kumar wrote.

Read more at WBZ News.