Homeland Security agent testifies on unusual cause of arrest of Tufts student

BOSTON, Mass. (WLNE) — A Homeland Security agent testified he was told not to tell a Tufts University student her visa had been revoked before arresting her.

Turkish national Rumeysa Ozturk was detained in March by masked agents near her home in Somerville.

Federal agent Patrick Cunningham testified in a Boston trial tied to the Trump administration’s deportation policy, saying the state department told his office to arrest Ozturk after her visa was quietly revoked.

She had no criminal record.

Cunningham said the order felt unusual, adding Homeland Security usually focuses on drug or financial crimes not immigration.

Ozturk spent six weeks in detention before a judge ordered her release.

Her case is still playing out in court.