Moussa Diawara was deported by ICE from the US to Ghana and sent to Mali
New details from the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has accused Moussa Diawara, a Malian national deported to Ghana, of immigration fraud after he was featured in a report by a US-based show 60Minutes.
Diawara had sought asylum in the US over claims that he faced persecution in his home country because of his sexual orientation.
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The case came into the spotlight after 60 Minutes, an American programme, featured Diawara’s story, including his wife and two children, who spoke about how much they missed him and their desire to have him return home.
Diawara, who was based in Texas and an Uber driver, was said to be among the deportees in Ghana who were sent back to their home country.
The report said he has been in the US for 25 years with no criminal record, but was arrested by ICE while wrapping up his night shift as an Uber driver.
However, details contained in his asylum application and shared by an American-based Fox News correspondent indicated that Diawara sought protection from the US government because he feared for his life if he were sent back to Mali.
In the application, Diawara said he had suffered persecution because he was gay and feared being killed by members of his community or an Islamic group if he returned to his home country.
He explained that he grew up in a traditional Muslim family in Mali, where he feared the consequences of people discovering his sexual orientation.
“I had experienced extreme punishment and persecution based on the ground of my sexual orientation,” he stated in his application.
In the document, Diawara, who was born in Bamako, Mali, on January 12, 1969, said he arrived in the United States on January 12, 2001, using a B1/B2 visa.
He said he had struggled with his sexual identity from childhood and felt more comfortable being intimate with boys than with girls as he grew older.
According to him, he concealed his feelings because he feared his parents, schoolmates and people in his neighbourhood would discover his sexual orientation.
He added that he had no one to confide in and often felt isolated while trying to live up to the expectations of his family and society.
“Sometimes I felt alone in the world,” he stated in the document.
Diawara further claimed that after moving to the United States, he was able to express his sexual orientation more freely.
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In response to Diawara’s claims, the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has accused him of immigration fraud, asserting that Diawara’s claim of being gay to seek asylum in the US was “fake”.
“Fake & Gay! Moussa Diawara, the Malian national featured in this shockingly poorly researched @60Minutes report, now faces allegations of immigration FRAUD after his asylum application surfaced, revealing that he claimed to be a HOMOSEXUAL man who feared persecution in Mali,” ICE stated.
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Fake & Gay!
— U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (@ICEgov) October 26, 2026
Moussa Diawara, the Malian national featured in this shockingly poorly researched @60Minutes report, now faces allegations of immigration FRAUD after his asylum application surfaced, revealing that he claimed to be a HOMOSEXUAL man who feared persecution in Mali.
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