US Judge Slams Trump Over Secret Deportation of Nigerians, Gambians to Ghana

By Johnson Folarin

A United States federal judge has sharply criticised the Trump administration for deporting Nigerian and Gambian migrants to Ghana in what she described as a deliberate attempt to circumvent immigration law.

District Court Judge Tanya Chutkan, while ruling on the case in Washington, raised serious concerns after lawyers argued that the migrants risk torture or persecution if returned to their home countries.

Chutkan ordered the US government to file a sworn statement detailing safeguards to ensure Ghana does not send the deportees back to Nigeria or Gambia.

Describing the arrangement as an “end run” around immigration law, she declared:

“I have not been shy about saying that I think this is a very suspicious scheme.”

She further suggested that the administration intentionally bypassed immigration rules by rerouting the deportations.

Despite her criticism, Chutkan declined to grant full relief to the migrants, noting:

“There’s no point in getting decisions from me that are immediately going to be stayed” by the Supreme Court.

The controversy stems from a lawsuit filed by five migrants who claimed they were secretly transferred from a Louisiana detention centre, shackled, and placed aboard a US military plane without being told their destination.

The case, supported by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and Asian Americans Advancing Justice, argued that the migrants enjoyed legal protection against deportation to Nigeria and Gambia.

The US Department of Justice countered that it no longer had custody of the migrants, stressing that courts lack authority over diplomatic arrangements. It also cited a Supreme Court precedent permitting deportations to third countries.

Meanwhile, Ghanaian President John Mahama confirmed his country had reached a deal with Washington to host West African deportees, disclosing that 14 migrants had already arrived in Ghana.

About The Author