Newark, New Jersey — A New Jersey man was detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement at Newark Liberty International Airport in August 2025, turning a planned family vacation into a 108-day detention.
According to reporting by NJ.com and Reason, Abdellatif Hafraoui, a Moroccan-born immigrant who has lived in the United States for nearly four decades, was stopped by federal agents while preparing to board a flight to Florida. Agents cited an unresolved “in absentia” removal order stemming from a missed immigration hearing years earlier. Such orders remain enforceable unless reopened by a judge.
Hafraoui said he was unaware of the prior hearing and alleges his former attorney—later convicted in an immigration fraud scheme—failed to notify him. He was held at Delaney Hall in Newark before being transferred to facilities in Louisiana and Arizona. A New Jersey immigration judge later vacated the old removal order, and Hafraoui was released in November on a $15,000 bond.
Data cited by the Cato Institute indicates a large share of 2025 ICE detainees had no violent criminal convictions. Hafraoui, who remains on electronic monitoring pending further proceedings, continues to challenge the decades-old order.
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