A Kentucky State University women's basketball player was released on bond Wednesday after spending two months in ICE custody. Aminata Seck, 26, from Dakar, Senegal, was greeted by family members outside the Grayson County Detention Center in Leitchfield, Kentucky. An immigration judge set Seck's $2,500 bond after determining that she is neither a danger to the community nor a flight risk, according to her attorney, Hishem Alsalman.
"I'm just ready to go back to school, get my master's and get this surgery done," Seck said at a news conference. She said the hardest part of her detention was being held in isolation over the final week. Seck will soon undergo knee surgery to repair a torn ACL and meniscus, a procedure that was postponed during her detention.
Seck was arrested Aug. 7 at Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport while attempting to travel to an HBCU all-star game with her basketball coach. The Department of Homeland Security said a judge ordered Seck's removal in September 2025 after she missed an immigration hearing. It said she entered the U.S. legally in 2019 on a temporary basis and overstayed "her welcome in violation of our nation's laws."
Seck's immigration case is ongoing, and she is scheduled to appear in court for a hearing Nov. 20, Alsalman said. Her release comes nearly a week after a Memphis judge ruled that Seck did not receive sufficient notice of the hearing she missed in 2025. Attorney Sadiqa Reynolds, who also represents Seck, said, "There are other people who are not basketball players, and they will not get this kind of attention." DHS did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Kentucky State University has declined to comment on the case, citing privacy concerns.
Source: ESPN General · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing