Federal officials disclosed the arrest of an individual who allegedly entered the U.S. under a false asylum claim and later became a corrections officer in Portland, Indiana.
Selah Dine Habib, originally from Mauritania, was apprehended on May 21. He had been released into the country by the Biden administration earlier in 2023, according to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
Details of Habib’s Case
Habib reportedly claimed he was homosexual in a pending asylum application. However, investigators found he married a woman after his entry into the U.S. The woman was identified as the daughter of the county sheriff, where Habib later worked as a corrections officer.
“He entered the country illegally in March 2023 near Lukeville, Arizona,” the DHS stated. “He will remain in ICE custody pending removal proceedings.”
The pending asylum application is considered fraudulent because he claimed homosexuality in 2023 but married a woman in 2025, DHS officials said.
He became a correctional officer at the Jay County Sheriff Department Jail after marrying the sheriff’s daughter. Employment authorization documents permitted his hiring.
Employment Verification and Procedures
Jay County Sheriff Larry Ray Newton confirmed Habib’s role as an unarmed correctional officer. He presented valid employment documents during the hiring process. An E-Verify check also cleared him for employment, according to county officials.
A statement from the Jay County Auditor’s Office read: “Mr. Habib submitted an I-9 with documentation, and an E-Verify Check was completed at the time of employment. The report came back as employment authorized.”
Discrepancies detected by the E-Verify system would have halted the hiring process immediately.
ICE and Law Enforcement Response
DHS emphasized restoring law and order, noting that illegal aliens should not hold law enforcement positions. Habib is currently in U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody at the Clay County Jail detention facility.
He is challenging a final deportation order from the United States, according to sources.