Canadian woman returns home after being detained by U.S. immigration officials

VANCOUVER — A Canadian woman detained for nearly two weeks by immigration officials in the United States is back on home soil, her mother confirmed.

Alexis Eagles said her daughter, Jasmine Mooney, landed at the Vancouver International Airport at around midnight Saturday and returned to her home in the city.

Eagles said she was at the airport to greet her 35-year-old daughter, along with friends of the businesswoman and former actress.

Eagles previously said Mooney had been in the custody of U.S. immigration officials since March 3, when her visa was denied as she tried to enter California from Mexico.

In a Facebook post last week, Eagles said Mooney had been detained at the San Ysidro border crossing, near San Diego, then transferred to the San Luis Regional Detention Center in Arizona.

There, Eagles said Mooney was placed in “inhumane” conditions in a cell holding 30 people with limited bathroom facilities.

“They are housed together in a single concrete cell with no natural light, fluorescent lights that are never turned off, no mats, no blankets,” Eagles said in the post.

Eagles said Mooney is not a criminal and there was no reason why her deportation had been delayed.

A statement from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement last week said Mooney was detained because she did not have legal documentation to be in the country.

The agency said she was processed in accordance with U.S. President Donald Trump’s executive order that subjected “all aliens in violation of U.S. immigration law” to possible arrest.

On Thursday, B.C. Premier David Eby said he had urged the Canadian government to do all it could through diplomatic channels to ensure her return.

Eby said while he didn’t know the details of the case, it was reinforcing Canadians’ anxiety about their southern neighbours stemming from the current rancour in U.S.-Canada relations.

“The nature of our relationship is so fraught right now that this case makes us all wonder, what about our relatives who are working in the States?” Eby said.

Eagles said she had already determined she “would not be travelling to the States for the foreseeable future” in response the Trump administration’s actions, but her daughter’s ordeal had “solidified” her mindset.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 15, 2025.

Brenna Owen, The Canadian Press