The wife of a Pakistani immigrant says her husband was wrongfully detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement, but the Department of Homeland Security claims he has an extensive criminal history of fraud dating back nearly 30 years.
The conflicting accounts center on the arrest of Zahid Chaudhry, who has been held at the ICE detention center in Tacoma for two weeks.
“They stole the light of my life. They shredded me. And expected me to be fine with that,” said Melissa Chaudhry, whose husband was detained by ICE on August 21.
She says ICE agents waited for Muhammad Zahid outside of a routine immigration appointment in Tukwila.
“He’s been a green card holder since 2001. And if we didn’t answer this notice, he would be considered to have abandoned his applications for citizenship,” Melissa Chaudhry explained.
According to his wife, Zahid is a father to their two young children and a disabled U.S. Army veteran who has lived in the United States for 25 years.
“He served until injuries made him have to retire in 2005, but he loved the Army. He wanted to make a career out of it,” she said.
However, according to a DHS statement, Zahid first entered the U.S. in 1998 on a visitor visa after lying about his criminal history in Australia, which included financial deception and passport falsification.
The DHS claims he then lied about this criminal history to obtain a green card and has been denied citizenship twice, applying eight more times while continuing to provide false information.
The Department of Homeland Security reports that Zahid falsely claimed he was deployed to Iraq.
Melissa says her husband never claimed he was deployed there.
“He was never deployed to Iraq. He was activated for Operation Iraqi Freedom, and as a soldier under orders, he went where he was ordered to go,” she added. “He was deployed for multiple different training locations in the United States, and he was injured during the course of that training before his unit departed for Iraq.”
The DHS also claims Zahid fraudulently collected $449,459 in veterans’ benefits and owes $81,080 for a mortgage reduction grant, with no payments made to date.
“Any money they say he has collected has been the just compensation due to any disabled soldier who broke his body in service to this country,” Melissa responded.
She did not know where the mortgage reduction grant money came from.
Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell came to Chaudhry’s defense in a statement:
“Muhammad Zahid Chaudhry served our country and was taking the lawful steps toward citizenship. Detaining him in that process is unjust and undermines faith in the system. This administration’s immigration enforcement is targeting our neighbors, friends, and even veterans rather than focusing on real public safety threats. I stand with those calling for his release and for an immigration system that honors dignity, service, and fairness. My team remains in close contact with our Congressional delegation and will continue to advocate for Mr. Chaudhry and his family on behalf of the Seattle community.”
The DHS responded to Mayor Harrell in a statement:
“Sanctuary politician Bruce Harrell and the media are peddling a FALSE sob story on this serial fraudster. Following lies about his military service, he owes the U.S. taxpayers more than $81,000. President Trump and Secretary Noem’s message is clear: criminal illegal aliens are not welcome in the United States,” a DHS Spokesperson said. “Why do sanctuary politicians and the media continue to peddle sob stories of criminal illegals and smear our brave ICE law enforcement officers? Make no mistake, these types of lies are contributing to our ICE law enforcement officers facing a 1000% increase in assaults against them.”
Melissa says her husband’s allegations have been taken out of context.
“They are looking for anything they can to smear the character of this honorable, decorated, disabled veteran who has been a pillar of his community for 25 years,” she said.
Zahid was denied bond, and his case will be heard by an immigration judge who will decide whether he will be deported.
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