A soccer player from Cleary University has been detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Karliana Perdomo, 20, was detained at North Lake Correctional Facility. Her primary focus? Asking her mother to tell her teachers why she wasn’t in class.
“It’s amazing, the level of commitment and responsibility my daughter has,” Liliana Gotopo said in an interview with a reporter from The Detroit Free Press, translated by a friend who speaks both Spanish and English.
“She’s a good person, a hardworking person. She doesn’t deserve what’s happening to her.”
It’s unclear what, exactly, led to the student’s arrest May 26. Individuals are typically held at North Lake if federal immigration officials believe they’re in the country without legal authorization. Perdomo was born in Venezuela.
A spokesperson for ICE acknowledged receiving questions from The Free Press but didn’t immediately respond May 28.
Perdomo’s arrest is part of a broader issue jolting higher education in the United States. Experts and data show the decisions of the current presidential administration — from revoking thousands of student visas to delaying application processing to instituting new social media vetting — led to confusion, fear and ultimately far fewer international students in universities across the country.
Cleary University is a small, nonprofit college based in Howell. In a statement, Cleary President and CEO Alan Drimmer wrote school officials are concerned for Perdomo.
“We … are deeply concerned for her well-being and the well-being of her family during this difficult time,” Drimmer wrote in a statement emailed by a spokesperson. “Karliana is a valued member of our campus community and our women’s soccer program.
“At this time, we are gathering additional information … and monitoring developments closely.”
Perdomo entered the United States as a 15-year-old fleeing persecution in September 2022, according to Gotopo. She fled after she was physically assaulted by a “political group.”
After presenting herself at the border near El Paso and spending her birthday in an immigration detention facility, Perdomo was ultimately allowed to join her mother in Detroit, according to Gotopo. She graduated from Western International High School in 2023, immediately enrolling in and playing soccer at St. Clair County Community College before moving to Cleary in 2025.
“I chose Cleary because it offered a unique balance between academics and athletics,” Perdomo was quoted as saying in a news release in 2025. “From the moment I visited, I felt a sense of community and support that made it clear this was the right place for me to succeed and feel at home.”
Gotopo said her daughter doesn’t have a student visa — often, universities treat students who aren’t citizens but have lived in the country for a period of time as local, not international.
Still, the situation draws attention to a much broader issue that’s “rocked” institutions of higher education, said Daniel Hurley, chief executive officer of the Michigan Association of State Universities.
“Of all the things buffeting higher ed right now, this is among the most significant, the most negatively impactful, and I would say the most frustrating and unnecessary,” he said.
What happened May 26?
A little before 9 a.m. May 26, according to Gotopo, ICE detained her daughter in Lincoln Park. They told Perdomo they ran the license plate on her car and received a notification. Gotopo said it was “weird” and added she’s trying to get more information.
A fellow driver took photos of Perdomo’s arrest and posted them to social media. They show Perdomo wearing a plain white sweatshirt and green pants, her hands behind her back. A man wearing a bulletproof vest is holding her by the arms and directing her to the back of a vehicle. His vest shows the letters ERO: Enforcement and Removal Operations, a component of ICE.
Gotopo knows her daughter has a pending asylum application, and thought she was allowed to stay in the United States under an authorization called “Temporary Protected Status.”
But the administration under President Donald Trump previously decided to end that form of protection for immigrants from Venezuela, a decision upheld in October 2025 by the U.S. Supreme Court. Still, federal officials acknowledge those previously afforded such status may still have valid documentation through October 2026.
Gotopo is looking for a lawyer.
“She has so much to offer to any community and society … because she’s an outstanding person,” Gotopo said of her daughter. “This country didn’t give her the opportunity to show what she has to offer.”
Reach Dave Boucher at dboucher@freepress.com.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Cleary University student detained by ICE as changes ‘rock’ higher ed
Reporting by Dave Boucher, Detroit Free Press / Detroit Free Press
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