WASHINGTON DULLES INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT — Annabella Gyasi, a 38-year-old pregnant woman from Ghana, was detained for more than a week at Washington Dulles International Airport with her four-year-old son after arriving on valid tourist visas. U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) nullified her visa and classified her as an asylum applicant after she stated she feared persecution in Ghana due to her son’s disability.

Gyasi’s son was born with malformed hands and had a scheduled medical appointment at Akron Children’s Hospital in Ohio on May 30. The pair had previously traveled to the U.S. in 2024 for medical care but returned to Ghana after being told the boy was too young for surgery. At Dulles, Gyasi told CBP officers she sought asylum and admitted under oath she did not intend to return to Ghana, triggering expedited removal proceedings.

Gyasi, approximately 20 weeks pregnant and experiencing complications including vaginal bleeding and lightheadedness, was hospitalized twice but returned each time to a windowless detention room at Dulles. According to court documents, the room had been converted into a holding cell with one bed, a sink, and a toilet. During one hospital visit, doctors expressed concern that she was not eating enough and was over-stressed.

“Ms. Gyasi legally traveled to the U.S. to get necessary medical care for her son, but the illegal detention and inhumane treatment that she’s experiencing at Dulles is endangering her son’s health as well as her own.” said Sophia Gregg, senior immigrants’ rights attorney at the ACLU of Virginia. Gyasi repeatedly told detention guards she and her son were hungry but were denied additional food. She later said she would rather be deported than not have enough food, and only received more food after signing a deportation order—a decision her lawyers later told CBP was made out of desperation.

“These allegations are false. Everyone in CBP custody, including this individual, has access to appropriate care, including medical evaluation by a doctor, medication, and food.” the Department of Homeland Security said in a statement.

U.S. District Judge Leonie Brinkema ordered a Friday hearing for oral arguments in Gyasi’s case.