Pastor Ara Torosian, who filmed their arrest, disputes the Department of Homeland Security’s claim that the couple were unlawfully present in the US.
He says they entered legally through a humanitarian programme and had work authorisations. “How can it be dangerous for the wife but not for the husband?” asks pastor, Ara Torosian, who himself fled Iran in 2010 after being detained for smuggling Bibles.
Majid, who managed to slip through the airport in Turkey, has been living in limbo since, while his lawyer follows up on his case. His wife, whose asylum case is still pending, now lives in Los Angeles with their 1.5-year-old daughter – a child who has never met her father.
In the US, Ali is living with a friend from his church, and hoping his own asylum claim will be more successful than that of his wife, who was deported to Iran this year.
“If they grant me asylum, how can I stay here when my wife is in Iran? If they deport me, I could go to prison the moment I land.”
Unable to work legally or open a bank account. He first stayed with a distant relative “just until my wife’s case was resolved,” but she was never released and, after nearly a year in detention, was deported. A small church later offered him temporary shelter.
“Anytime they ask me to leave, I have to sleep in parks,” he says.
He is awaiting an immigration hearing but sees no good outcome. His wife has received another summons from Iranian intelligence.
“If they arrest her and demand I return,” he says quietly, “I’ll have no choice.”
