Somali activist Omar Jamal says he’s confident he won’t be deported

ALBERT LEA, Minn. – Twin Cities Somali activist Omar Jamal said Friday that he feels confident he’ll stay in the U.S. after he was released this week from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention at the Freeborn County jail.

In a news conference inside the Freeborn County Board chambers, Jamal declined to talk in specifics of his case. Many of the circumstances surrounding his month-long detention and recent release remained unclear.

Jamal was joined by County Sheriff Ryan Shea, and together they refuted criticisms about conditions inside the jail from outside groups.

“Some people would like to think that if somebody was brought here, they fall into a black hole,” Jamal said. “We had access to medical care, recreation programs, and above all what I really noticed is that everyone had access to a cell phone.”

Jamal, who some in the Somali community consider a polarizing figure, was detained by ICE agents last month. Court records show he was convicted in Tennessee for immigration fraud in 2005, and was sentenced to probation and referred to federal officials for possible deportation. ICE officials have said Jamal was issued a final order of removal in 2011.

Jamal’s lawyers have said the conviction arose from a mistake on his asylum application.

He was released from custody with supervision conditions on Sept. 29 after his lawyers filed a federal lawsuit on his behalf. Judge Patrick J. Schiltz said in a court filing that the two parties had reached an agreement and ordered Jamal to be released.

“While we don’t provide a lavish living environment, the people in our care are treated with human dignity and the respect that all people deserve,” Shea said, noting he had never met Jamal before this week.

Jamal is a longtime leader for the Twin Cities Somali community. He built his profile in Minnesota as executive director of the Somali Justice Advocacy Center, a nonprofit that sought to help Somali immigrants navigate the legal system. He became a go-to figure for local media, weighing in on issues ranging from police shootings to federal terrorism investigations.

He has worked as a community service officer for the Ramsey County Sheriff’s Office since 2020. Jamal noted he was back at work this week after his release.

Jamal decline to answer questions about his ongoing immigration case, though he said he felt good about his position in the U.S.

“They’re stuck with me,” he said.

ICE Regional Director Erin Bultje said days after Jamal’s arrest that his criminal record included “assault, a court-ordered restraining order from his wife and children, three counts of fraud and two counts of making a fraudulent statement.”

Jamal’s lawyers said at the time there are no charges or convictions related to assault or a restraining order in Minnesota. Jamal on Friday denied ICE allegations and criticized media outlets including the Minnesota Star Tribune for reporting on them.

“I don’t know anything about two frauds, I don’t know anything about assault allegations,” Jamal said. “... that’s something we’re looking into.”

Messages to ICE on Friday were not returned.

Jamal noted that he complied with ICE agents when they detained him in a surprise move. He said they initially told him he would be deported to Canada, but that never happened.