A prominent Columbia University student and influencer has become the focus of an escalating federal immigration row, after she claimed on social media that Department of Homeland Security (DHS) agents 'illegally arrested' her during an early‑morning operation at her university housing.
Ellie Aghayeva, a neuroscience student with a large online following, was detained on Thursday, 26 February, in a case that has triggered sharply conflicting accounts from university leaders and federal officials, and prompted Columbia to tighten its rules on law‑enforcement access to campus.
Influencer Student Appeals For Help From Detention Centre
Aghayeva built her audience by posting neuroscience advice and productivity content, including '10‑hour study with me' videos and other lifestyle material, amassing more than 100,000 followers across Instagram and TikTok.
Her online presence took a sudden and dramatic turn at around 10am EST on 26 February, when she posted an Instagram Story showing herself inside a car, accompanied by a message saying the DHS had 'illegally arrested' her.
'Please help,' she wrote to her followers. The abrupt shift from study‑focused content to real‑time claims of federal detention quickly alarmed fellow students and supporters.
Originally from Azerbaijan, Aghayeva is a senior at Columbia, where international students typically pay upwards of £47,000 ($60,000) per year to remain enrolled. Her LinkedIn profile lists her as an active neuroscience researcher at the Ivy League institution.
🚨 BREAKING: DHS just detained Columbia U influencer Ellie Aghayeva in her dorm this morning. Hundreds of thousands of followers, allegedly zero valid visa.
— Kim "Katie" USA (@KimKatieUSA) February 26, 2026
Girl spent more time curating feeds than fixing her status.
Adios, likes don’t renew green cards. pic.twitter.com/8bdyrlTAkJ
Conflicting Accounts Of The DHS Operation
Columbia president Claire Shipman issued a strongly worded statement about the early‑morning operation, saying federal agents entered at about 6.30am and 'allegedly' posed as if they were searching for a 'missing person'.
Shipman condemned the tactics reportedly used to reach the student, and the Columbia Spectator student newspaper quickly identified Aghayeva and confirmed that she was detained at a university‑managed apartment.
Federal officials disputed the university's characterisation. In a statement, DHS said its entry to the property had been straightforward and facilitated by those inside.
'The building manager and her roommate let officers into the apartment,' the agency said. DHS also asserted that Aghayeva's student visa expired in 2016 'for failing to attend classes'.
The clash of narratives has raised wider questions on campus about how far federal agents may go in immigration enforcement, and what protections are available to international students living in university housing.
BREAKING: In an email to the Columbia University community, President Claire Shipman says that DHS agents detained a Columbia student in university housing this morning after apparently misrepresenting themselves to gain entry pic.twitter.com/lHz4IYRXMi
— Noah Hurowitz (@NoahHurowitz) February 26, 2026
Columbia Tightens Warrant Rules For Federal Agents
The case is the second high‑profile detention of a foreign student linked to Columbia in recent years, following the apprehension of Algerian Palestinian student Mahmoud Khalil in March 2025.
In response to mounting concern, university officials have announced a stricter policy on how federal immigration authorities may operate on campus. The new rules change the conditions under which law‑enforcement officers can access non‑public university spaces.
Under the updated guidelines, federal agents will now require a judicial warrant or subpoena to enter non‑public areas of campus. Columbia has explicitly said that an administrative warrant will no longer be sufficient.
Administrators say the policy is intended to shield international scholars from sudden, unannounced detentions. Legal experts note that securing a judicial warrant generally demands a higher evidentiary threshold, which could in practice make surprise immigration raids on university grounds more difficult to carry out.
As Aghayeva remains in federal custody, her initial plea has been widely shared by followers and fellow students, turning her case into a flashpoint for debate over immigration enforcement powers, university autonomy and the vulnerability of international students navigating the US system.
