Bangladeshi student self-deports from US amid ‘inhumane’ ICE detention: ‘I felt completely broken’

Bangladeshi student Joytu Chowdhury deports himself from the US after he was detained by the ICE in ‘inhumane’ conditions for two months.

Joytu Chowdhury, a 24-year-old Bangladeshi student in Illinois who was arrested by the ICE after his student visa was revoked, said he chose to self-deport from the US because of the inhumane conditions of the ICE detention centers. Initially, he said he was determined to fight the case against him and to get reunited with his wife, a US citizen, but then he said he reached a point where he felt completely broken and overwhelmed. Now he is back in Bangladesh though a fundraiser has been put up to bring him back to the US. “At first, I was determined to fight my case and hold on to the life I had built. I didn’t want to give up. But over time, being in that environment took a serious toll on me mentally and emotionally,” Chowdhury told Newsweek. “I reached a point where I felt completely broken—exhausted, overwhelmed and uncertain about everything. Eventually, I gave up and chose to self-deport, not because I wanted to but because I felt like I had no other choice left. In many ways, it felt like that’s what the system pushes people toward—to wear them down until they can’t keep fighting anymore.”

Who is Joytu Chowdhury? Why did he self-deport?

Self-deportation is when an individual decides to leave the US on their own without any deportation order from the court. The Donald Trump administration encourages this and offers money to those who choose this. Chowdhury came to the US on an F-1 student visa in 2021 to study at Illinois Wesleyan University, majoring in finance with a minor in computer science. In August 2025, his visa status was terminated. He also had a DUI (driving under influence) and a retail theft case. Expressing regret for the past cases, Chowdhury said his status was revoked because of transferring between schools. On December 3, 2025, he was arrested by ICE agents and his ordeal began. He was transferred through a series of facilities across multiple states. He said the conditions inside ICE facilities are extremely inhumane and lack proper health care. He said he did not get a refund for his return ticket which he had to arrange.

What DHS said

The DHS dismissed all the allegations and told Newsweek that its detention centers have comprehensive medical facilities and basic standards. On the issue of the ticket, the DHS said he arranged a ticket for which he lacked a passport required for transit through Dubai under Emirates Airlines’ policy. ICE said it purchased a ticket for Chowdhury that did not require a passport for February 25, 2026 and it did not cost him anything, so there was no question of any refund. “Now he is trying to survive in Bangladesh, where ongoing political turmoil has made daily life unstable and work extremely difficult to find. In the middle of this uncertainty, he is doing everything he can to stay hopeful, stay afloat, and keep moving forward,” Joytu’s fundraiser seeking legal funds said. It has been set up by one Marie Eledge who knows Chowdhury and his wife through the pickleball community. Chowdhury’s wife Ashley Yamilet is a 24-year-old student and a US citizen.