Friday, October 24, 2025

Attorneys: Altadena Resident Detained and Held by ICE Denied Critical Medication

By EDDIE RIVERA

Masuma Khan [from a supplied courtesy photo]

Masuma Khan, who has lived in Altadena for nearly three decades, was taken into custody at a scheduled check-in and is now being held without access to needed medication, her attorneys say

Masuma Khan, a longtime Altadena resident who has lived in the United States for nearly three decades, is facing imminent deportation after she was detained by federal immigration authorities during what her family and attorneys say was a routine check-in earlier this month. Khan—who is married to a US citizen, entered the country legally, and has no criminal record—is being held at the California City Detention Facility, where her advocates say she has been denied access to critical medication for multiple chronic health conditions.

Khan, 60, who holds a Bangladeshi passport, had appeared on October 6 for a scheduled passport and reporting appointment with immigration officials when she was unexpectedly taken into custody and told she would be removed from the country. Her legal team, which includes attorneys from Public Counsel, How Law APC and South Asian Network, filed an emergency habeas petition and a request for a temporary restraining order this week in federal court, arguing for her release while her immigration appeal remains pending.

“Ms. Khan has lived in Altadena for most of 27 years, has complied with every check-in, and has serious medical needs that are not being addressed in detention,” said Sonoumi Basi, an attorney with Public Counsel. “She is suddenly facing deportation, despite having followed every requirement asked of her.”

Her daughter, Riya Khan, said her mother, who had once worked at Lucky Boy restaurant,  had spent five years routinely scanning her passport at check-ins without incident. This time, she said, her mother waited two hours before being taken into a back room, coerced into signing immigration paperwork without an interpreter, and denied access to call her attorney or her family.

“She had no idea what she was signing,” Riya said. “They took her into custody, chained her hands and ankles, didn’t let her take her medication, and transferred her late that night. She’s been calling me every day, but today they cut off her communication.”

Masuma Khan was reportedly taken to LAX Thursday morning for deportation to an unknown location, but was returned to the detention center after she refused to sign various deportation documents. She was due back at the center at 6 p.m., according to sources.

Khan’s case stems in part from a decades-old immigration filing made by a man she hired for help, who submitted a fraudulent asylum application without her understanding, according to her daughter. Ritu Majahan Estes, part of the legal advocacy team, said the error has followed her since and repeatedly derailed her attempts to gain status through her U.S. citizen husband.

“She should have been able to resolve this years ago,” Estes said, calling the case a product of bad advice, language barriers and ineffective counsel.

As her lawyers seek emergency relief, Khan’s family says her sudden detention has left them without their primary caregiver. Riya, who has chronic medical issues of her own, said her mother has been the one holding her household together.

The family was briefly displaced during last year’s Eaton Fire, which burned homes on their block, though their house survived.

Attorneys say Khan is not a flight risk and poses no public safety concern, and believe her detention reflects a broader shift in how immigration authorities are handling long-monitored residents who have complied with supervision requirements for years.

ICE did not immediately respond to a request for comment late Thursday.

Khan could be deported at any time, her attorneys said. “Our aim is to get her home,” Basi said. “Her life, health and family stability depend on it.”