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By Peter Aitken
Politics Weekend Editor
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Representative Ruben Gallego of Arizona, a Democrat, has accused Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) of "chasing quotas" rather than targeting criminals as officials have said.
"Kelly Yu is back with her family, where she should’ve been all along," Gallego wrote on X. "Nearly a year in ICE custody for someone with no criminal record isn’t public safety. Instead of targeting real threats, this administration is chasing quotas and locking up small business owners who make our country better."
Why It Matters
Kelly Yu was detained in May 2025 and held until this week following a routine immigration check-in after entering the United States from China illegally decades ago.
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Yu, the owner of two sushi restaurants in Glendale and Peoria, has drawn national attention as community members and lawmakers rallied to her cause and demanded her release.
Her story is just one of many that have surfaced throughout the Trump administration's mass deportation operation, which is reportedly the largest in the nation's history. However, the methods used to achieve that goal have drawn heightened scrutiny after it came to light that ICE agents were arresting U.S. citizens and people living legally in the country.
Immigrants have filed thousands of federal court petitions challenging their detention, with Reuters reporting more than 20,200 habeas cases since the president took office.
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What To Know
Local outlet KTAR News on Friday reported that Yu was released following a successful habeas corpus petition, with a judge ruling in her favor.
Yu spoke out about her detainment, saying that ICE is not going after criminals as officials have said: "They say they're only after criminals, and that's not true. We're not criminals."
Yu fled China over two decades ago and arrived in the U.S. without documentation to seek asylum from the one-child policy, but she was denied asylum. She is married to an American, with whom she has a daughter, who is an American citizen.
KTAR News reported that Yu has to wear an ankle monitor and cannot travel more than 75 miles while also continuing to check in with courts.
What People Are Saying
A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson in an email to Newsweek: "Lai Kuen Yu, an illegal alien from Hong Kong, has been ordered RELEASED by an activist Biden judge. The facts in this case have not changed: this illegal alien has had a final deportation order from a judge since 2005. She was arrested illegally crossing the border by U.S. Border Patrol in Arizona on February 4, 2004, and two days later was released into the country."
"On November 14, 2013, the Board of Immigration Appeals dismissed her appeal and upheld her final order of removal," the spokesperson continued. "On August 23, 2016, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit denied her appeal. On June 12, the Board of Immigration Appeals granted her a temporary stay of removal while they consider her motion to reopen. We will continue to fight for the arrest, detention, and removal of illegal aliens who have no right to be in our country.”
Senator Mark Kelly of Arizona, a Democrat, wrote on X: "After nearly a year, Kelly Yu is free and back with her family. She never should’ve spent a day in ICE detention. Instead of focusing on dangerous criminals, this administration is locking up people like Kelly, a mom, job creator, and member of our community."
Kelly Yu in comments to KTAR News: "I'm so happy to be out. I'm so happy to be able to [reunite] with my family," "Thank you so much for the help and care that everyone been sending to me. Thank you so much to everyone."
Update 2/22/26, 5:51 p.m. ET: This article has been updated with additional information.
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