American Pie star breaks silence after being detained by ICE and ‘wrapped in chains’ during the process of applying for a visa.
Jasmine Mooney’s shocking detention experience
Canadian actress Jasmine Mooney has revealed her harrowing experience of being detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) for 12 days.
She described feeling ‘wrapped in chains’ while attempting to apply for a visa at the U.S.-Mexico border.
Mooney, known for her role in “American Pie Presents: The Book of Love” (2009), was taken into custody despite not being charged with any crime.
She was detained at the southern border in San Ysidro, between Mexico and San Diego, before being transferred multiple times.
Actress says she felt ‘kidnapped’ and was kept in the dark
The 35-year-old actress was transported between Arizona and San Diego before finally being released and flown back to Vancouver on March 15. Speaking to *CTV News* at the airport, she shared how the ordeal left her exhausted and confused.
“I’m still, to be honest, really processing everything,” she said. “I haven’t slept in a while and haven’t eaten proper food in a while.”
She also revealed that she was never given an explanation for her detention.
“No one told me anything. Not once,” she said. “I still don’t even know how I’m home. My friends, my family, and the media are the reason, I think, that I’m home.”
Mooney also criticizes ‘Inhumane’ conditions in detention facilities
Mooney first encountered visa issues in November 2023 when her three-year TN work visa was revoked while she was traveling from Vancouver to Los Angeles.
Based on legal advice, she attempted to obtain a new visa at the San Ysidro border crossing.
Instead, she was detained and transferred to the San Luis Regional Detention Center in Arizona.
While in detention, Mooney claimed she was treated inhumanely.
“I have never in my life seen anything so inhumane,”
she said. “I was put in a cell, and I had to sleep on a mat with no blanket, no pillow, with an aluminum foil wrapped over my body like a dead body for two and a half days.”
She also stated that she was shackled during deportation and kept awake for 24 hours alongside 30 other women.
Mooney reflects on the experience and calls for awareness
Mooney was shocked by how long some detainees were held in similar conditions.
“When I got to know everyone else in there, and heard all of their stories and how long they were in there, I was like, ‘OK, I’m not allowed to feel sorry for myself at all, because every single person in here is in a way worse situation than me,’” she said.
She remains uncertain if her detention was due to former President Donald Trump’s immigration policies but is warning other Canadians to be cautious when handling visa issues.
“I don’t want to point fingers at anything,” she said. “I really don’t know. But, obviously, people can speculate what they want.”
Now back home, Mooney is speaking out to raise awareness about the treatment of detainees and to prevent others from experiencing a similar fate.
@globalnews.ca Canadian citizen Jasmine Mooney is back home after U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detained her at the border in San Diego as she was reapplying for her work visa. She describes the 12-day ordeal of being shipped to various facilities and comforting other women in custody. #ICE #US #Immigration #Canada