Iowa City mother detained by ICE, family disputes fake passport claim
Sep 24, 2026·Location: Iowa City, IA
Country of origin: Ivory Coast

Fatou Traore, a 43-year-old University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics custodian born in Ivory Coast, was detained by ICE agents in unmarked vehicles on September 24 while leaving for work, witnessed by her son Esoumaila Diallo and sister Haby Diallo. ICE alleges Traore has a 2011 final removal order and admitted to using a fake birth certificate and passport to enter the country, but her son and attorneys dispute this, saying she never made such admissions and always asked for her lawyer when questioned. Her attorneys provided a 2011 order granting her withholding of removal from Ivory Coast and a valid employment authorization card good through March 2029. She is being held at Richwood Correctional Center in Monroe, Louisiana, and has been told she will be deported to Sierra Leone, a country she has never visited, despite a federal appeals court ruling blocking third-country deportations. Her attorneys have filed a motion to stay her removal. She left behind her husband, who works alongside her at the hospital, and four sons ages 3 to 19.
Sources
- Family of Iowa City ICE detainee calls for her to be brought home, Miller-Meeks responds
cbs2iowa.com·Oct 1, 2026·archived copy
- thegazette.com
- Iowa City sons fight ICE detention, deportation of mom
thegazette.com·Sep 29, 2026
- Family rejects ICE accusations Iowa City mom used fake ID
thegazette.com·Oct 2, 2026
thegazette.com·Oct 2, 2026
- Hundreds rally to free Iowa City mother seized by ICE and facing third-country deportation; Miller-Meeks asks for stay from DHS - Little Village
littlevillagemag.com·Oct 1, 2026
- Family rallies in Davenport to urge release of mother detained by ICE
qctimes.com·Oct 3, 2026
- Letter to the editor: Bring Fatou Traore home - Little Village
littlevillagemag.com·Oct 1, 2026
- Iowa City rally calls for ICE to release mother of four - Radio Iowa
radioiowa.com·Oct 1, 2026
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