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US citizen Sunny Naqvi detained for over 40 hours after failed India trip
A US citizen named Sundas ‘Sunny’ Naqvi was detained for more than 40 hours by the Department of Homeland Security, her family claims.
A US citizen named Sundas ‘Sunny’ Naqvi was detained for more than 40 hours by the Department of Homeland Security, her family claims. Sunny Naqvi, a 28-year-old woman of South Asian descent, was detained when she returned to the US after travelling abroad.
Her attorney claims that the DHS detained her citing a "curious travel history." Customs and Border Patrol officials dispute these claims, according to an ABC News report.
Some background to the case
Sunny Naqvi was born in Evanston, Illinois and raised in the suburbs of Chicago. A US citizen by birth, she travelled overseas for a work trip with five colleagues. Three of her colleagues were Pakistani nationals who held Green Cards, and all were in the US legally.
The group was supposed to fly to India, but not all of them were allowed to board the flight, according to a CBS report. Everyone in the group was of Pakistani descent — including Naqvi, although she holds US citizenship.
Naqvi and the others traveled to Bulgaria and Austria instead. They were detained when they returned to the US.
On Thursday, the group landed at Chicago O'Hare International Airport from Turkey. All six members of the group were taken into custody by the Department of Homeland Security as they got off the plane.
They spent 30 hours in DHS custody before being transferred to the Broadview detention center.
What Sunny Naqvi’s family claims
Naqvi’s family said she was held for 30 hours at Chicago O’Hare International Airport before being transferred to the Broadview Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility.
Her relatives said that at one point, they lost the location tracking being shared from her phone. Despite her phone previously showing her at Broadview, federal agents continued to tell the family that Naqvi was not in custody.
“The cops were lying to our faces,” said Sarah Afzal, Naqvi’s sister. “We were asking them, 'Hey, her location is here. We were in contact with her,' and they kept being like, 'I don't know what to tell you.'”
On Sunday, a crowd gathered outside the Broadview detention center demanding Naqvi’s release.
(Also read: LG executives detained during ICE raid on Hyundai-LG plant, were on business trip to US: report)
The family said Naqvi was later sent to a facility in Dodge County, Wisconsin, and was released early Saturday morning. All in all, the 28-year-old spent over 40 hours in custody across several centres.
Her family added that her phone had died, forcing her to hitchhike with a passing driver to reach a hotel, where her family was finally able to pick her up.
“It was just really scary to me, and I think it's really scary to know that this can happen to someone born here,” Afzal said. “This whole morning was about just kind of getting it together. She doesn't want this to be about her. This is about everyone that is illegally detained.”
What the police said
"I spoke with Sunny around 1:30 on Friday, and then her phone started pinging right behind me at the Broadview detention facility," said Cook County Commissioner Kevin Morrison, who is also a family friend of Naqvi.
"It is our belief that during that time, they began moving the six individuals from Broadview to an immigration facility in Wisconsin," he said.
Detained over India trip?
Cook County Commissioner Kevin Morrison said the Naqvi and her coworkers were supposed to fly to India six weeks ago for the work trip, but they were not all allowed to board the flight.
He said that all six members of the group, including Sunny Naqvi, were of Pakistani descent. Three of them were US citizens, and the other three had Green Cards.
Naqvi traveled to Bulgaria and Austria instead. She was detained when she returned to the US. (Also read: UK woman detained by ICE for 6 weeks despite valid US visa: ‘Agents get bonus’)
"All she was told was there was curious travel history, but they had no cause to detain her for those 30 hours," Morrison said.
Officials deny detainment
According to CBS News, a spokesperson the U.S. Customs and Border Protection refuted these allegations.
“Summer Sundas 'Sunny" Naqvi, arrived at O'Hare at 10:21 a.m. on March 5, 2026. CBP officers referred her to Secondary, for additional inspection based on law enforcement checks and conducted a baggage exam.
“Ms Naqvi departed CBP within 90 minutes of her arrival to the United States. Ms Naqvi was not taken into custody or transferred to ICE for detention. CBP did NOT transfer any individuals to Broadview or perform any phone detentions from her flight on Thursday, March 5th,” said the spokesperson.
