Seamus Culleton, a plasterer and construction company owner originally from Glenmore in County Kilkenny, Ireland, never imagined his American dream would lead him to a sprawling detention center in the Texas desert. Yet for nearly five months, Culleton has been held at Camp East Montana, an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facility inside the Fort Bliss Army base in El Paso—a place he now describes as a "nightmare."
Culleton’s ordeal began on September 9, 2025, when he was apprehended by ICE agents while driving home from a Home Depot in Massachusetts. According to court records cited by CBS News Boston, local police ran a license check on his vehicle, setting in motion a chain of events that would see him transported nearly 2,500 miles from his longtime Boston home to the borderlands of Texas.
Speaking by phone to Irish broadcaster RTE, Culleton recounted the shock of his arrest. "As far as I know I was covered," he said. "None of that mattered; they cuffed me and took me away." At the time, Culleton insisted he had a valid U.S. work permit, no criminal record, and was married to a U.S. citizen. He was also in the process of applying for a green card, a path to permanent residency available to spouses of American nationals.
But as U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin explained in statements to multiple outlets including KFOX14/CBS4 and CNN, Culleton’s status was more complicated. He had entered the U.S. in 2009 under the visa waiver program, which allows for a 90-day stay without a visa. After overstaying, he lost legal status. "He received full due process and was issued a final order of removal by an immigration judge on September 10, 2025," McLaughlin said. "He was offered the chance to instantly be removed to Ireland, but chose to stay in ICE custody, in fact, he took affirmative steps to remain in detention."
McLaughlin emphasized that "a pending green card application and work authorization does not give someone legal status to be in our country. Being in detention is a choice. We encourage all illegal aliens to use the CBP Home app to take control of their departure."
For Culleton, the choice to remain in detention was motivated by his desire to fight his case from within the U.S. rather than accept immediate deportation. He refused to sign paperwork agreeing to his removal, hoping his marriage-based petition would offer a path forward. "I’m just locked in this room all day every day," he told RTE. "I’m in fear for my life down here, honestly."
The conditions at Camp East Montana, according to Culleton, are dire. In interviews with RTE and CBS News Boston, he described being held in a large, overcrowded room with more than 70 other men, sleeping under constant artificial lighting in cold, damp conditions. "You don’t know what’s going to happen on a day-to-day basis. You don’t know if there’s going to be riots, you don’t know what’s going to happen. It’s a nightmare down here," he said. Meals are small—"kid size meals, so everybody is hungry"—and detainees have limited access to medical care and rarely go outside. "I have barely any outside time, no fresh air, no sunshine," he lamented.
Culleton also called the facility "filthy," with toilets and showers "completely nasty" and "very rarely cleaned." His wife, Tiffany Smith, told CBS News Boston that in a recent video call, he appeared jaundiced and had lost significant weight. "He’s lost a lot of weight," she said, describing the toll the experience has taken on her once-jovial husband. "And it’s just, I don’t know, that’s gone."
In response to these allegations, DHS has pushed back forcefully. "These claims that there are subprime conditions at ICE facilities are FALSE. ICE has higher detention standards than most U.S. prisons that hold actual U.S. citizens," McLaughlin stated. Still, concerns about Camp East Montana are not new. El Paso civic leaders and human rights advocates have repeatedly raised alarms about conditions at the facility.
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and other advocacy groups have called for the closure of Camp East Montana, alleging a pattern of abuses including beatings, sexual abuse, threats to compel deportation, medical neglect, hunger, and denial of legal access. In December, a coalition of human rights organizations sent a letter demanding the camp’s closure, citing these and other violations.
Tragically, the risks inside ICE facilities are not hypothetical. In 2026 alone, six detainees died while in ICE custody nationwide, with two of those deaths occurring at Camp East Montana, reportedly the largest ICE facility in the country. And as recently as early February 2026, El Paso health officials were notified of tuberculosis cases at the camp. While city officials acknowledge awareness of these cases, they stress that ICE and its contracted medical providers are responsible for diagnosing, treating, and managing tuberculosis among detainees.
Culleton’s case has drawn international attention, particularly in Ireland. The Irish government has confirmed it is providing consular assistance, with both the Department of Foreign Affairs and the office of the Taoiseach engaging directly with U.S. authorities. Taoiseach Micheál Martin told reporters, "Every country has migration policies, but those ICE facilities are a concern." Irish Minister for Foreign Affairs Helen McEntee noted that while Irish nationals are a small minority in ICE detention, there has been a 330% increase in Irish citizens seeking consular assistance related to U.S. deportations over the past year, rising to 65 cases. McEntee said she is aware of fewer than a dozen similar Irish detention cases at present.
For families like the Culletons, the U.S. immigration system can feel impenetrable. Tiffany Smith described the confusion and isolation she experienced after her husband’s detention. "I didn’t know if he got deported, I didn’t know if he was back in Ireland. I had no idea if he was safe… And there’s no one that helps you to get this information," she told RTE. Attempts to visit have proven nearly impossible, despite official assurances that visits are feasible.
While Irish immigrants make up only a small fraction of those in ICE custody, their cases expose broader issues in U.S. immigration detention. According to CNN, ICE is currently holding around 70,000 people, the highest number since the agency’s founding, with 74% of detainees having no criminal conviction. Advocacy groups argue that the system disproportionately ensnares Black and brown migrants, but Culleton’s case shows that even those with longstanding ties and pending legal applications are not immune from detention’s reach.
As the debate over immigration policy and detention conditions continues, Culleton’s story stands as a stark reminder of the human cost behind the headlines. For now, he remains at Camp East Montana, waiting—and hoping—for a resolution that will allow him to return to the life he built over nearly two decades in America.