U.S. immigration officials confirmed Saturday that controversial far-right British commentator Milo Yiannopoulos has been taken into custody and deported back to the United Kingdom.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced that Yiannopoulos, who originally entered the United States legally in May 2019, was expelled to his home country on Friday following allegations that he had overstayed the terms of his entry visa. According to a DHS spokesperson, an immigration judge issued a final formal removal order on July 22, after Yiannopoulos failed to appear at a scheduled immigration hearing to address his overstay violation.
The commentator was taken into custody by officers from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) this past Thursday during processing at Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport, located in the state of Louisiana. No immediate public statement has been issued regarding the deportation: requests for comment sent to Yiannopoulos’ representatives have gone unanswered as of Saturday.
Yiannopoulos has built a high public profile as an outspoken advocate for far-right conservative causes, known for repeatedly taking intentionally provocative stances on divisive social and political issues. He has drawn widespread controversy for his public criticisms of feminism, Islam, and immigrant communities, and was an early and prominent supporter of former President Donald Trump’s hardline immigration restriction policies.