Milo Yiannopoulos has been deported to the United Kingdom, just one day after Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) took the former Breitbart editor into custody at a Louisiana airport.
Legal Insurrection reported Friday that ICE arrested Yiannopoulos at Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport in Kenner, Louisiana. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said the British national legally entered the United States on May 14, 2019, but later overstayed and failed to appear for an immigration hearing. An immigration judge issued a final order of removal on July 22.
That stay in ICE custody did not last long.
A DHS spokesperson confirmed Saturday that Yiannopoulos was deported back to the United Kingdom on Friday.
DHS used the removal to make a broader point about the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown:
“DHS reversed the horrendous Biden-era policy that allowed aliens in our country illegally to jet around our country. Under President Trump, DHS will no longer tolerate this. This administration is working diligently to ensure that aliens in our country illegally can no longer fly unless it is out of our country to self-deport.”
Yiannopoulos appears to have been in New Orleans around the time of a Friday night performance by Ye, formerly known as Kanye West. Yiannopoulos previously worked for Ye as chief of staff and political director, though it is unclear whether he traveled to Louisiana specifically for the concert.
His removal comes with a bit of irony.
Yiannopoulos has been an outspoken supporter of aggressive immigration enforcement during Trump’s second term. Last year, he called for even tougher action and wrote on X:
“We have got to deport millions and millions and millions of people. Without that, nothing else matters.”
He has also called for “total legal immunity for ICE agents when they’re on duty” and reportedly advocated for ICE checkpoints at supermarket entrances.
DHS had already leaned into that contrast when announcing his arrest. The agency posted Yiannopoulos’ booking photo Friday and reminded people in the country illegally that the administration is offering $3,000 and a free flight to those who voluntarily leave through the CBP Home App. Those who refuse, DHS warned, risk arrest and removal.
Laura Loomer, a Trump ally, claimed on social media that she was the one who reported Yiannopoulos to ICE, adding yet another layer to the story’s already tangled MAGA dynamics.
In Yiannopoulos’ case, the government did not need much time to make good on that warning.
Arrested Thursday. Deported Friday.
Donations tax deductible
to the full extent allowed by law.