Aminata Seck, HBCU basketball player detained by ICE, to be released from custody

Seck, who plays on the women’s basketball team at Kentucky State, was arrested on Aug. 7 at the Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport.

An HBCU basketball player who spent two months detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement will finally be released from custody.

Aminata Seck, who stars on the Kentucky State women’s basketball team, was arrested on August 7 before she was set to board a flight for New York with her teammates. A native of Senegal, Seck entered the United States on a student visa in 2019, according to an official from the Department of Homeland Security, but the visa had expired.

“She chose to overstay her welcome in violation of our nation’s laws,” DHS officials said. “To be clear: a pending application or work authorization does not confer legal status in the United States.”

Seck has a torn ACL and was set for surgery on September 7. Lawyer Sadiqa Reynolds was among the first to confirm Seck’s release from detention.

“Amina Seck will be released from custody on $2500 bond today,” Reynolds wrote on social media. “Thank you Alsalman Law Office. Thank you New Americans Initiative we did it!”

DHS reportedly told Seck’s legal team that they mailed her a notice regarding her visa on Sept. 5, 2025, but Seck’s lawyer, Hishem Alsalman, said she never received it. After a failure to appear on that date, DHS said in a statement that an immigration judge secured an order of removal for Seck dated Sept. 8, 2025.

Alsalman told The Athletic that the next steps for Seck are to ensure she receives “proper medical treatment and be able to heal and continue pursuing her education here in the United States as she was already doing.”

Last week, an immigration judge halted a deportation order for Seck, clearing the way for her to post bond. The senior was named to the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference All-Conference Third Team for 2025-26, averaging 11 points and 11 rebounds a game. She also received the conference’s Elite 16 award, SIAC’s highest academic achievement for student athletes.