Green card holder Paramjit Singh still in ICE custody, family says second brain tumor surgery delayed due to detention

48-year-old Paramjit Singh , who was detained by the ICE at Chicago O'Hare International Airport as he was returning from India, is still in ICE custody and his second brain tumor surgery got delayed due to the detention. As his case is set to be heard on October 14, his family told the BBC that the authorities are now citing an offence dating back to 2008, which does not exist. "Paramjit Singh is not getting the medical help he needs. He is only getting medical check-ups," his lawyer, Louis Angeles, said.

When he was detained at the Chicago airport, the law enforcement cited a 1999 case in which Singh used a public pay phone without paying. But he served 10 days in prison for the offence and paid a $4137.50 fine. Immigration authorities said he faced a one-and-a-half-year sentence, but served only for 10 days.

His niece Kiran Virk said immigration authorities then said Singh was convicted of a forgery offence in Illinois in 2008 but there is no such case. Virk said the family hired a private detective to find out if there is any criminal record for Paramjit Singh in Illinois but the detective said there is none, and the authorities may have mistaken him for someone else.

"We are also taking legal steps to block him from being deported from the US," Singh's lawyer said.

Paramjit Singh has been in the US for teh last 30 years, has a green card, and operates a business in Fort Wayne, Indiana. He makes trips to India several times per year. His family is worried about his health condition as he has a brain tumor and a heart condition. He was also taken to the ER when his condition deteriorated in detention. Earlier, it was reported that he was granted a bond but the family alleged that ICE was using "court tactics" to keep Singh detained.