Perfume labelled 'opium' lands Indian-origin man in detention in US

Kapil Raghu was detained on May 3 after officials in Benton pulled him over for a non-moving traffic violation and found a perfume bottle labelled 'opium'

An Indian-origin man, staying in Arkansas and working towards obtaining US citizenship, is now seeking to have his visa status restored after he was detained by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) for a month, THV11 reported.

 

Kapil Raghu is married to an American national and was detained on May 3 after police officials in Benton, a suburb of Little Rock, pulled him over for a non-moving traffic violation, the report said, citing his attorney.  

 

After Raghu was stopped, the police officers found a small perfume bottle in his car, labelled "opium", and arrested him for possessing narcotics. While Raghu informed the police that the bottle contains perfume and is labelled opium because of the scent, bodycam footage obtained by local network THV11 shows police accusing him of having an illegal substance in his vehicle.

 

 

"You got a vial of opium that was in your center console," an officer told the Raghu, asking him to take a seat.

 

Clarifying his stance, Raghu said, “I was not doing anything wrong when he pulled me over. I was following all regulations." He added that he was making a food delivery when he was pulled over.

 

The Arkansas State Crime Lab later concluded that the substance in the bottle was perfume and not opium. However, Raghu had to spend three days in the Saline County jail, where officials found an “administrative/legal error” showing his visa status had expired, his attorney said.

 

He was then taken into custody by ICE officials, who sent him to an immigration facility in Louisiana, where he was detained for a month. Speaking about his wife, Ashley Mays, Raghu told THV11, "She used to call me every night. Crying, and my stepdaughter putting a Bible on her chest, crying. My stepdaughter was crying a lot. And she [Mays] was planning to sell her cars and move to some other country where we can live happily.”

 

While Raghu was let go after a month, and charges against him were dropped officially by a district court judge on May 20, The Guardian reported, adding that the detainment has put his journey to becoming a permanent citizen in a fix. A statement by his lawyer read, "It is my understanding that, though released, Kapil now has a ‘deportation’ status, meaning he can be immediately deported for any minor offense, even jaywalking." He further said, "But, more crucially, this classification bars him from working and earning money for his family, which has been devastating for them.”

 

Kapil Raghu recently sent a letter to the immigration authorities, explaining his case and asking whether his visa status could be restored through proper legal channels. Elaborating further on his case, Raghu, in his letter, explained that his immigration attorney had "failed to timely file the required paperwork before my visa expired, which left me vulnerable and placed me in my current situation”.