A Texas dad deported by ICE to Ghana says he was dropped in Mali with no money or ID, a country a judge ruled he could not be sent to

A Texas father says ICE agents were waiting at his home near Houston after he finished an Uber shift on July 11. He also says he was later deported to Ghana and then sent on by plane to Mali. Moussa Diawara, 57, is from Mali and has lived in the U.S. for almost half his life.

According to CBS News, Diawara arrived in the country at 32 with a tourist visa and stayed past its expiration. He later asked for refugee status, claiming Mali would be dangerous for him after he converted to Christianity. In 2012, an immigration judge barred his removal to Mali, a ruling that let him get a work permit. Diawara has a clean criminal record.

ICE held him for three weeks in Texas, where he was unable to speak to his lawyer or a judge. ICE deported him to Ghana on July 31, a country he had never visited. Diawara stated that armed guards kept him and other deportees at a hotel there, and no one could make calls. Within days, he added, officials in Ghana put him on a plane to Mali against his will.

DHS responds to questions about the paperwork

A medical form given to him during the trip to Ghana listed “SHRC Mali” as the destination. SHRC refers to a Special High Risk Charter, which is a type of flight. Both of his bag tags, issued by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), list Mali too. He agreed that deportation itself was within the government’s rights, just not to Mali.

James Percival, the top lawyer at DHS, stated, “He was flown to Ghana.” He added that he could not explain why the paper lists Mali. Later, a DHS spokesperson stated that contractors made the bag tags and have no role in choosing destinations. The spokesperson called the medical form a “clerical error.” DHS also stated that Ghana gave the U.S. “diplomatic assurances” about Diawara’s safety.

The agency questioned whether his fear of persecution in Mali is credible. Ghana’s government chose not to comment. Ghanaian officials left him in Mali with no money or ID, according to the investigation. When reporters first reached him in August, he had no home and was in hiding. He later left for another country with help from local truckers. He asked that the country not be named for his safety.

On July 30, his flight carrying 63 people took off from Texas, with stops in Sierra Leone and the Central African Republic before Ghana. Reporters reached 19 of the deportees to Ghana, and 17 stated that they were later forced to go to places such as Guinea, Niger, Mali, Nigeria and Gambia. U.S. immigration judges had barred their return to those countries, according to the investigation. Percival stated that he is unaware of Ghana ever sending deportees elsewhere against their will.

The investigation also found that 19% of the passengers had criminal charges or convictions, 19% had traffic violations and 62% had no record. Percival stated that the administration is acting under laws passed by Congress and that many deportees committed serious crimes.

The report states that about 25,000 people have been deported by ICE to third countries, and dozens of nations are involved. A federal appeals court has backed a class action ruling against the policy, finding that deportees were denied due process. The Supreme Court will take up the case in December, and the deportations can go on until then.

In Washington, D.C., his attorney, Reuben S. Kerben, is asking a federal judge for an order to bring him back. His wife, Barbara, a registered nurse, is waiting in Texas with their son, 16, and daughter, 12. ICE detentions have also drawn attention in San Diego, where a woman says agents detained her at a green card interview.