The US Department of Homeland Security has announced the detention of a Michigan man it claims was an intelligence officer in Saddam Hussein's regime.
Raad Alanbagi was arrested after an investigation that uncovered his ties to the former Iraqi dictator's government, Homeland Security Investigations said in a post on X on Sunday.
"HSI continues to safeguard our communities and national security," the post said, describing Mr Alanbagi as a "high-ranking" former officer.
Iraq’s security force was an important instrument of state control under Saddam. Overlapping agencies allowed him to stay in power by dealing with real or fictitious threats to his regime.
It is unclear what immigration status Mr Alanbagi had at the time of his arrest, or how he was able to move to the US despite his alleged connections. It is also unclear what charges he might face. No federal indictment is listed against him on a government database for Michigan.
The National has contacted the Department of Homeland Security for further comment.
Typically, according to the Immigration and Naturalisation Act, any person who is or has been a member of a totalitarian party is inadmissible to the US. Making false statements when applying for any US visa or for citizenship can result in the revocation of status, deportation and a lifetime ban on entering the country.
Mr Alanbagi's detention is not the first time the US has acted against people perceived to have been part of Saddam's government. In 2020, former colonel Saad Al Qaysy was sentenced to three years of probation and stripped of his US citizenship after being convicted of lying to obtain it.
