Elderly French Woman Arrested by ICE Is Allowed to Fly Home

UPDATE Apr 17, 2026 9:12 AM CDT

A French woman in her 80s who was arrested by ICE earlier this month has been released after 16 days in custody and allowed to fly home, reports the New York Times. Marie-Therese Ross had moved to Alabama after marrying her long-lost American sweetheart, who died unexpectedly in January before her immigration process was complete. "The main thing is that she is back in France, and that is fully satisfying to us," says Jean-Noel Barrot, the French foreign affairs minister. Ross' three adult children met her at the airport in Paris.

Apr 14, 2026 1:48 PM CDT

A transatlantic love story that began six decades ago in France has morphed into an immigration standoff in the US in 2026. The BBC reports on the odd circumstances: A French woman identified as Marie-Therese Ross, whose age is 85 or 86, is being held at a US Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in Louisiana after being arrested in early April. Her son told French media that she moved to Alabama earlier this year to live with her new American husband, William Ross, whom she first met decades ago when she was a secretary and he was a US soldier stationed in France, explains the Guardian.

The pair went their separate ways in their own countries, but reconnected decades later and married in 2023 after they were both widowed. Marie-Therese applied for a green card, but things got complicated when her husband died suddenly in January before the green card was approved. Then came a dispute with her husband's son over the estate. He "threatened her, intimidated her, and even went so far as to cut off her water, internet, and electricity," Marie-Therese's son told French outlet Ouest-France. Marie-Therese was arrested by ICE the day before a scheduled hearing in that dispute, though it's not clear whether the legal fight played any role in her arrest.

"They handcuffed her hands and feet like she was a dangerous criminal," says her son. France's foreign ministry has become involved, and Marie-Therese has received a consular visit. Her family is pushing to bring her back to France, citing her age and health, while US authorities have not publicly commented.