U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers arrested a Somali illegal immigrant who authorities say is linked to a past piracy case and faces an outstanding warrant for passport fraud.
Said Jama Ahmed is being held in North Dakota on illegal entry charges after agents apprehended him near the U.S.-Canada border earlier this month.
Officials said his fingerprints match records collected during a 2012 U.S. Navy operation involving suspected Somali pirates in the Gulf of Aden, according to an announcement Friday from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
“Weak Biden administration border policies allowed this illegal alien to enter and remain in the country despite his multiple law enforcement encounters,” DHS acting Assistant Secretary Lauren Bis said in a statement.
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According to DHS, Ahmed was first spotted April 14 by an off-duty Royal Canadian Mounted Police officer walking southbound with a backpack a few miles north of the border.
About two hours later, a U.S. Border Patrol agent located Ahmed and took him into custody.
A fingerprint match tied Ahmed to a 2012 incident in which the USS Halsey, a Navy guided-missile destroyer, responded to a distress call from an Indian-flagged vessel hijacked by pirates, according to DHS.
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A Navy boarding team encountered Ahmed and nine others who were allegedly armed and holding the ship hostage.
“A Visit, Board, Search and Seizure (VBSS) team conducted boarding operations and encountered Ahmed and nine other armed pirates who had taken the Indian ship hostage by force, where the Navy then logged Ahmed’s fingerprint,” DHS said.
Authorities say Ahmed entered the U.S. in September 2022 near San Luis, Arizona, and has had multiple prior encounters with law enforcement.
In 2024, Immigration and Customs Enforcement detained him during a search for fraudulent documents.
A full extradition warrant was issued in April 2025, according to DHS.
“We are thankful for our hardworking U.S. CBP officers and Canadian officials for their cooperation in arresting this individual,” Bis added. “DHS will continue to work to arrest criminal illegal aliens to protect the American homeland from all threats.”
