A lawyer for a Turkish national and doctoral student at Tufts University says she has been detained by Department of Homeland Security agents without explanation.
A Turkish national and doctoral student at Tufts University has been detained by federal agents without explanation, her lawyer said Wednesday.
Rumeysa Ozturk, 30, had just left her home in Somerville to meet with friends Tuesday night when she was detained by U.S. Department of Homeland Security agents, lawyer Mahsa Khanbabai said in a petition filed in Boston federal court.
Video obtained by The Associated Press appears to show six people, their faces covered, taking away Ozturk’s phone as she yells and is handcuffed.
“We’re the police,” members of the group are heard saying in the video.
A man is heard asking, “Why are you hiding your faces?”In this image taken from security camera video, Rumeysa Ozturk, a 30-year-old doctoral student at Tufts University, is detained by Department of Homeland Security agents on a street in Sommerville, Mass., Tuesday, March 26, 2025. (AP Photo)
Khanbabai said Ozturk, who is Muslim, was meeting friends for iftar, a meal that breaks a fast at sunset during Ramadan.
“We are unaware of her whereabouts and have not been able to contact her. No charges have been filed against Rumeysa to date that we are aware of,” Khanbabai said in a statement. Ozturk has a visa allowing her to study in the United States, Khanbabai said.In this image taken from security camera video, Rumeysa Ozturk, a 30-year-old doctoral student at Tufts University, is detained by Department of Homeland Security agents on a street in Sommerville, Mass., Tuesday, March 26, 2025. (AP Photo)
Neighbors said they were left rattled by the arrest, which played out at 5:30 p.m. on a residential block.
“It looked like a kidnapping,” said Michael Mathis, a 32-year-old software engineer whose surveillance camera captured the arrest. “They approach her and start grabbing her with their faces covered. They’re covering their faces. They’re in unmarked vehicles.”Hundreds of people gather in Somerville, Mass., on March 26, 2025, to demand the release of Rumeysa Ozturk, a Turkish student at Tufts University, who was arrested by federal agents Tuesday night. (AP Photo/Michael Casey)
Tufts University President Sunil Kumar said Wednesday in a statement that the school received reports that federal authorities detained an international graduate student and that the student’s visa had been terminated.
“The university had no pre-knowledge of this incident and did not share any information with federal authorities prior to the event,” Kumar said.
