Former Columbia man shares update one year after being detained by ICE

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A former Columbia man detained by ICE in Chicago after a trip to Europe last year shared a glimpse this week of his new life one year later.

Blue Note and Rose Music Hall's former head of security, Owen Ramsingh, was detained at O'Hare Airport in Chicago in September 2025 after returning from visiting family in the Netherlands.

Ramsingh posted on Facebook Wednesday, saying that he and his wife have obtained residency in Mexico and that he got his driver's license. Their daughter is expected to visit in November.

He wrote that his mental health is still bad some days due to PTSD from his time in detention.

"I have a wonderful doctor here that is helping," Ramsingh wrote. "It’s hard not being able to work after so many years of working multiple jobs at once and always being busy but I take early morning sunrise bike rides to the beach to clear my mind."

He was detained because of a drug conviction in 1998, when he was 17 years old, according to court records obtained by ABC 17 News. Ramsingh was transferred at least once and spent his detention time at a facility in El Paso, Texas.

A New Mexico immigration judge ordered Ramsingh to be deported for life last December. Ramsingh lived in the Netherlands as a child and was deported back to the Netherlands in February.

Before his deportation, Ramsingh had lived in the U.S. since he was a child. He was issued a green card as a child of a U.S. citizen in 1986.

Ramsingh wrote that an album release is coming, sharing his experience from his time being detained.

"Anyone that knows me well, knows life has not been easy since childhood. Thank you again for all of the support. We miss everyone! Continue to pray for my family as this becomes a new normal. I will continue to fight the fight and will never give up," Ramsingh wrote.