ICE agents arrest Iranian national in St. Paul
Immigration attorneys are pushing back on Immigration and Customs Enforcement's claims that a St. Paul, Minnesota man they detained over the weekend had ties to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
ICE agents arrested 56-year-old Mehran Makari Seheli at his St. Paul home on Sunday, alleging he was a former member of the IRGC who has lived illegally in the U.S. since 1998.
"He's been in the the U.S. for 27 years now, never been hiding from authorities," said Bruce Nestor, who has represented Seheli in the past. "He was just astounded. No one would tell him what was going on. Nothing had changed in his life."
Seheli came to the U.S. seeking asylum in 1998, which was temporarily granted. He got married, had a family and worked in construction, according to Nestor. He says it wasn't until Seheli applied for citizenship in 2008 that federal authorities realized he overstayed and was in the country illegally.
According to court documents, Seheli pleaded guilty in 2009 to using a fake Turkish passport with his name on it and in 2022, pleaded guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm. He was sentenced to 15 months in prison.
Nestor says the constant legal battle culminated when federal officials tried to deport him to Iran, who wouldn't take him. From there, Nestor says Seheli would check in regularly with ICE officers to get work permits.
"All of a sudden, these agents show up and arrest him," Nestor said.
Now, Seheli's status is in limbo.
"The claim that he's illegally remained in the United States since 2022 is really a falsehood," Nestor said. "It's true he doesn't have a permanent legal status, but he wasn't hiding from anybody."
Nestor says Seheli is "being used for political messaging" and "publicity by the Department of Homeland Security."
Seheli is now in Sherburne County Jail. Nestor says because of a Supreme Court ruling this week, people can now be deported to countries where they have no ties. He's worries Seheli could be sent anywhere at any time.
WCCO has sent several requests for comments to ICE's St. Paul Field Office but they say they cannot answer questions at this time.
Seheli was one of 11 Iranian foreign nationals arrested across the country in the span of 48 hours. Officials say five of those arrested had previous criminal convictions. DHS said the arrests were not tied to any specific terrorism plots.
