Sheriff sues woman who claimed immigration agents detained her

A Wisconsin sheriff has filed a $1 million defamation lawsuit against an Illinois woman who claimed that federal agents detained her for nearly two days at O’Hare International Airport, presenting evidence she actually checked into a hotel a few hours after landing.

Dodge County Sheriff Dale Schmidt filed the lawsuit Friday and presented documents and text messages during a press conference that he said disproved the claims, seeking repercussions against 28-year-old U.S. citizen Sundas Naqvi and her family friend, Cook County Commissioner Kevin Morrison.

On Monday, a federal judge granted the sheriff’s request for an expedited subpoena for potential evidence on Naqvi’s phone.

“[The claims] have not been supported by any … verified evidence at all,” Schmidt said, adding: “At no point was Sundas Naqvi in the custody of the Dodge County Sheriff’s Office.”

Naqvi, from Skokie, drew national attention last month after claiming that U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents at the airport in Chicago detained her and five coworkers for 30 hours. She alleged the incident occurred on March 5 after returning from a work trip to Turkey.

According to Naqvi, she was held at O’Hare, moved to a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in Broadview and then transferred to a jail in Dodge County, Wisconsin.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security disputed her claims, releasing surveillance images on social media last month that officials said show Naqvi leaving the airport about 90 minutes after landing.

During Friday’s press conference, Schmidt presented a hotel ledger from Rosemont, Illinois, showing Naqvi checked in about three hours after landing at O’Hare on March 5 — the same day she claimed she was detained.

The sheriff also shared screenshots of text messages Naqvi exchanged with an unidentified witness on March 5 during the alleged detention. In one message, she asked to borrow the witness’s card to order food, and in another, she mentioned checking out the hotel gym.

Screenshots of additional messages from March 6 show Naqvi making small talk and asking an unidentified witness, “May I use your card to pay my spa lady?” The messages appear to have been sent during the period she claims she was detained.

The witness told authorities he drove Naqvi to Wisconsin on March 7 to help her sister, who was having car trouble.

On the way, the pair stopped at a gas station in Slinger, Wisconsin, shortly after 5:30 a.m., according to surveillance footage. They left at 5:47 a.m., and the witness said he later drove Naqvi to a national chain hotel. 

The outfit Naqvi is seen wearing in the surveillance footage appears to match clothing she wore in a photo taken hours later and posted on social media by Morrison, a reported friend of her family.

“I’m so grateful to see Sunny reunited with her family back at home, and [I am] looking forward to telling her story tomorrow. Thank you to everyone who helped elevate her situation, showed up, and helped to get her released,” Morrison wrote.

Morrison is a two-term Cook County commissioner who, last month, participated in the Democratic primary for the 8th Congressional District to replace U.S. Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi, D-Ill.

The lawsuit also names Morrison, who helped amplify Naqvi’s claims. Schmidt said the allegations damaged his office’s reputation. Schmidt also claimed that Navqi has a “history of lying to law enforcement,” including a “false report” of sexual assault in 2019. 

“I don’t have any charges here in Dodge County to bring against her. My only recourse is to make sure the public knows that she can’t do this,” he said.

Morrison and his office did not immediately respond to The Christian Post’s request for comment.

In a statement last month, after DHS and Schmidt disputed the claims, Morrison accused officials of “trying to create a cover-up.”

“They are seeking not to have any accountability whatsoever. And I think this is terrifying and concerning to us all,” he said. “We need transparency of the facts of what actually occurred. We need accountability for everyone who took part in this moment. But we need investigations by our Congress, and we need action and legislation to ensure that this doesn’t happen again.”