SAN DIEGO (KGTV) — A German man says he’s grateful to be back home in Europe after being arrested by ICE and forced to spend over two weeks at an immigration detention center near the San Diego border.
Lucas Sielaff, 25, said U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers put him and his American fiancée in handcuffs after they tried to enter the San Diego-Mexico border from Tijuana last month.
“They accused me [of living] in America instead of visiting, but there was no proof that I overstayed anything,” Sielaff said in an interview with Team 10 Thursday from Germany.
Sielaff has been in a long-distance relationship with Las Vegas psychologist Dr. Lennon Tyler since 2022, when the two met overseas in Prague.
She told Team 10 her fiancé has come to the U.S. before without issue and always returned to Germany to comply with his visa.
She went to Tijuana to get expensive surgery for her dog. She said CBP officers were immediately suspicious after seeing Sielaff’s German passport and sent the couple to a secondary screening, where they were separated on Feb. 18.
She said she was forced to leave her dog alone in the car for hours.
Claims CBP chained ankle
“They rip my hair tie out. They do a body check. They make me open my mouth. They fingerprint me. I say, 'Is this legal? Can I have a lawyer?' They say, 'You don't have a right to have a lawyer. You're being detained in a secure building,'" she said.
Tyler, an American citizen, said when she asked to speak to a supervisor, tensions escalated.
“They take me over to a bench. They chain my ankle to a bench. Hours go by. I keep asking questions. They tell me to shut up," she said.
She accused CBP officers of using scare tactics on her fiancé.
“They use fear and confusion to control you. I'm a psychologist and that's what was happening," she said.
Sielaff said CBP canceled his ESTA visa. ICE then arrested him and placed him in the Otay Mesa Detention Center.
“It was like a psychological game, and you have to tell yourself every time to be strong and be calm. It’s an experience nobody wants," he said.
'Grateful to be home'
But soon after, Tyler said she got a frantic call from Sielaff.
"He sounds panicked. He says, 'Baby, I need you right now.' And I said, "What do you need?" And he says, 'They just called my name right now, and I need you to book this flight,'" Tyler said.
The German national had just minutes to enter a flight confirmation on a tablet inside the detention center that inmates use to communicate with ICE officers.
It worked.
On Wednesday evening, ICE escorted Sielaff to the San Diego airport, where he boarded a flight to Munich.
“I'm grateful to be home,” he said after getting off the plane.
Last week, Team 10 reported a German tattoo artist was being held by ICE in detention after trying to enter the San Diego border from Mexico with her American friend.
Jessica Brösche, whom ICE said violated the terms of her visa, remains in custody at the Otay Mesa Detention Center.
Tyler said she is now warning other Germans who might be thinking of coming to the U.S. to cancel their trips.
“They are holding innocent German nationals and throwing them in prison," she said.
Team 10 asked CBP and ICE why Sielaff was being detained on Monday, but the agencies didn’t return our emails by Thursday evening.
On Friday morning, after this story was published, an ICE spokesperson confirmed Sielaff's arrest without providing specific details.
"His detention is related to the violation of the terms and conditions of his admission. All aliens in violation of U.S. immigration law may be subject to arrest, detention and, if found removable by final order, removal from the United States, regardless of nationality," an ICE spokeswoman wrote.
