Who is Elmina 'Ellie' Aghayeva? Columbia University student detained by ICE and freed hours later

Columbia University student Elmina “Ellie” Aghayeva was detained by agents from US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) on Thursday morning and released hours later after New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani raised her case with President Donald Trump.

Aghayeva, a senior at Columbia University originally from Azerbaijan, was taken into custody from a university-owned residential building early Thursday. The detention sparked protests on campus and drew immediate political attention.

Conflicting accounts of the arrest

Columbia officials said ICE agents entered the building under false pretenses, claiming they were searching for a missing person. That allegation was also referenced in a court filing by Aghayeva’s attorneys.

The Department of Homeland Security disputed that version of events.

Shortly after being detained, Aghayeva posted an Instagram story that read: “DHS illegally arrested me. Please help.”

DHS also denied claims by some state officials that agents posed as New York City police officers.

Mayor’s intervention

Mamdani said he raised Aghayeva’s detention during a previously scheduled White House meeting with Trump, which was primarily focused on housing policy. He later followed up with the president by phone and said Trump agreed to allow her release.

The White House did not publicly comment on the decision.

Mamdani also said he urged Trump to drop immigration cases involving other current and former students facing deportation in connection with campus protests over the war in Gaza. There was no public response from the White House on those requests.

DHS statement on visa status

In a statement to Newsweek, a DHS official said:

“ICE arrested Elmina (Ellie) Aghayeva, an illegal alien from Azerbaijan, whose student visa was terminated in 2016 under the Obama administration for failing to attend classes. The building manager and her roommate let officers into the apartment. She has no pending appeals or applications with DHS.”

The department’s assertion that her student visa was terminated in 2016 contrasts with a statement from Aghayeva’s friends released through the American Association of University Professors, which said she holds a valid visa.

Federal authorities have not publicly addressed that discrepancy beyond their initial statement.

Who is Elmina Aghayeva?

Aghayeva is majoring in neuroscience and political science at Columbia. Friends and faculty members describe her as best known on campus and online as a content creator who shares videos about student life and navigating college as an immigrant.

She has more than 113,000 followers on TikTok and 107,000 followers on Instagram. University officials declined to comment on details of her immigration status or enrollment history, citing privacy concerns, according to Newsweek.

Authorities and the university have not publicly linked her to last year’s pro-Palestinian demonstrations that roiled Columbia’s campus.

Hours after being released, Aghayeva posted on Instagram:

"Hi guys. I am so grateful for everyone of you. I just got out a little while ago. I am safe and okay. In an uber otw back home. I am so sorry, but I am in complete shock over what happened and my phone is blowing up with calls from reporters. I need a bit of time to process everything. I will come back soon but please don't worry."

In a separate message earlier, she wrote, “I am safe and okay,” adding that she was in “complete shock.”

Her brief detention and rapid release have drawn national attention, raising questions about immigration enforcement actions involving university students and the handling of visa disputes.