U.S. Immigration officials arrested controversial British far-right commentator Milo Yiannopoulos on Thursday in New Orleans, according to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
The arrest took place at Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport, where Yiannopoulos was accused of overstaying his visa. He entered the United States legally in May 2019 through New York City. An immigration judge issued a final order for his removal on July 22 after he failed to appear at his immigration hearing, as confirmed by DHS.
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A DHS spokesperson stated, “He chose to overstay his welcome in violation of our nation’s laws.” Current information about Yiannopoulos’ detention location is not available on ICE’s online detainee locator, which instead directs family and legal representatives to the agency’s office in Alexandria, Louisiana, known as a deportation hub.
Representatives for Yiannopoulos have not commented on the situation, and it remains unclear whether he has legal representation to assist him during this process.
Most recently, Yiannopoulos has been working with rapper Ye, formerly known as Kanye West, who is scheduled to perform in New Orleans on Friday evening.
Yiannopoulos is known for his outspoken support of conservative issues and has frequently made headlines for his controversial views on topics such as feminism, Islam, and immigration. He has been an advocate for stricter immigration policies, once tweeting, “Zero immigration for the next 20 years. No ifs, no buts.”
Rising to fame in the early 2010s, Yiannopoulos was a prominent writer for the conservative site Breitbart News but resigned in 2017 after a video surfaced where he appeared to endorse pedophilia. He later expressed remorse for his comments, stating he himself was a victim of sexual assault as a minor.
His recent arrest comes amid a nationwide increase in immigration detentions linked to former President Trump’s immigration policies. Far-right activist Laura Loomer quickly took to social media to express approval of Yiannopoulos’ arrest, noting years of public disputes between the two.
Loomer tweeted, “I was the first person to report on the fact that Milo was in the US illegally where he incited violence against President Trump and worked for Marjorie Traitor Greene.”
The controversy surrounding Yiannopoulos peaked during his “Troll Academy Tour” across colleges in 2017, where protests erupted against his appearances. Some students accused him of hate speech, while others defended him as a proponent of free speech. Reports also highlighted his connections with self-proclaimed white nationalists during this time.
In subsequent years, Yiannopoulos remained active in conservative circles, including serving as an intern for former Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene and running a brief presidential campaign for Ye. His recent role as a spokesperson for Ye comes amidst the rapper’s own controversies related to antisemitic comments, which Ye has since apologized for.
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This story has been corrected to say Milo Yiannopoulos entered the U.S. legally in 2019, not illegally.
