Natalie H.: Jamaican pastor deported while court case pending, held indefinitely in Equatorial Guinea
Natalie Holmes, 51, a Jamaican pastor, says she was deported to Equatorial Guinea in June while her case was still pending. She remains among 29 people held at a decommissioned hotel, reporting assaults by armed guards.
Sep 8, 2026Country of origin: Jamaica

Natalie Holmes, 51, a Jamaican national and ordained pastor, says she was deported to Equatorial Guinea in June while her habeas corpus petition challenging her removal was still pending. She remains among 29 men and women held indefinitely at the decommissioned Hotel Bamy in Malabo, where deportees say they have been dragged from their rooms at gunpoint, handcuffed, assaulted and threatened by armed guards. Witnesses and Amnesty International report that two men at the hotel were recently hooded, bound, beaten with guns and shoved down stairs by police, allegedly to stop them from exposing deteriorating conditions. American judges had ruled that most of those held, including Holmes, could not be deported to their home countries due to risk of torture or persecution, yet Equatorial Guinea has granted them no legal status, documents, medical care or legal assistance.
Timeline
Tags
Sources
- U.S. deportees assaulted, threatened at gunpoint in Equatorial Guinea, three say
- A Central African Hotel Has Become a Nightmare Prison for U.S. Deportees
Amandla News·Sep 24, 2026
- Just Security
- Inside an African hotel where asylum seekers deported by the US are imprisoned
Arab News·May 28, 2026
Show 1 more source ↓Show fewer sources ↑
Loading…
Related incidents
- Filiberto G.: Cuban man suffers stroke in ICE custody, deported in wheelchairOct 22, 2026 · Miami, FL
- Ahmed S.: Gay Arizona man deported, beaten in Equatorial GuineaOct 22, 2026 · Tucson, AZ
- Brayan S.: Deported to Central African Republic despite court orderOct 21, 2026 · Senegal
- Abdou L.: Gay Togolese man deported to Sierra Leone despite asylum rulingOct 20, 2026 · Abidjan, Ivory Coast
- Domingo T.Q.: Portland restaurant worker wrongly deported despite judge's order, ICE to return himOct 17, 2026 · Portland, ME
- Mexican men deported from Phoenix on DHS-overseen flightsOct 16, 2026 · Phoenix, AZ