ICE 'Tricked Security Guard' to Enter Columbia Dorm and Arrest Student Elmina 'Ellie' Aghayeva, Investigation Claims

A concerning new detail has emerged in the case of a Columbia University student who was briefly detained after ICE entered campus housing without a judicial warrant, officials say.

According to reports, US Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents arrested Elmina 'Ellie' Aghayeva, a 29-year-old senior at the university, after allegedly misleading a building security guard to gain entry on 26 February.

She was released the same afternoon after several hours in custody.

The arrest carried out without a judicial warrant, according to the university, has triggered protests on campus and renewed scrutiny over how federal agents enter student housing.

Who is Ellie Aghayeva?

Aghayeva is a senior in Columbia's School of General Studies and is expected to graduate in 2026 with a double major in neuroscience and political science.

Friends and classmates describe her as a highly active student involved in campus groups and online communities.

Outside of school, she built a following of more than 100,000 people across Instagram and TikTok, where she posted content about productivity, academics and her experience as an immigrant student in the United States.

According to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), her F-1 student visa was terminated in 2016 after she allegedly stopped attending classes at a previous institution. DHS said she had remained in the country without legal status since then and was therefore subject to removal proceedings.

Columbia officials, however, confirmed that Aghayeva was currently enrolled and living in university-linked housing at the time of the arrest.

DHS Denies Impersonating Police Officers

On 26 February, around 6:00am, five plainclothes agents affiliated with the Department of Homeland Security arrived at Aghayeva's residential building in Manhattan, according to university officials.

Columbia's acting president, Claire Shipman, later said the agents gained access to the building by telling a security attendant they were searching for a missing child. Shipman said the agents did not present a judicial warrant, which Columbia policy requires before law enforcement can enter non-public university areas such as student housing.

Once inside the building, the agents went to Aghayeva's apartment and detained her.

During the encounter, Aghayeva sent messages to friends asking for help. 'ICE is in my house. They are trying to take me away,' she wrote in one group chat. She also posted briefly on Instagram, claiming she had been 'illegally arrested.'

Federal officials dispute parts of the university's account. A spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security said the agents identified themselves as Homeland Security investigators and displayed badges. DHS has denied impersonating police officers.

Video and Accounts of How Agents Entered

Security footage from the building has not been publicly released, though New York officials have called for it to be made public.

Body-camera footage released later from the New York City Police Department shows officers arriving after the arrest in response to a 911 call reporting suspicious individuals in the building. The video shows federal agents identifying themselves to police as Homeland Security investigators.

A Columbia public safety officer also arrived during the incident and asked the agents for a warrant, according to university officials. Shipman said the agents continued with the arrest despite the request.

Agents ultimately transported Aghayeva into federal custody.

Columbia's Own Policies Questioned

After the incident, New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani said he raised Aghayeva's case with Donald Trump during a White House meeting, after which she was released later that day.

Posting on Instagram, Aghayeva later wrote she was 'safe and okay' but 'in complete shock.' She remains free while facing ongoing immigration proceedings.

The episode has also drawn scrutiny toward Columbia University after an investigation reported staff allowed agents inside despite a policy requiring a judicial warrant for non-public areas.

University officials later acknowledged the lapse and said additional training and security measures are being introduced. The case has also been compared to earlier incidents involving other Columbia students targeted by immigration authorities, including activist Mahmoud Khalil.