Seamus Culleton, the Irish man who has spent months in a Texas immigration detention centre, failed to appear in court in Ireland in 2009 on drugs-related charges.
A bench warrant for his arrest was issued in April 2009, one month after he had moved to the United States.
Mr Culleton, 38, has been in custody in El Paso, Texas, almost 4,000km from his home in Boston, after he was picked up by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents last September.
Originally from Glenmore in Co Kilkenny, he had previously been undocumented in the US, and was in the final stages of receiving his Green Card and had a valid work permit, according to his lawyer.
It has now emerged that Mr Culleton had been charged with the unlawful possession of drugs, possession for sale and supply, as well as obstruction in relation to an incident on 17 May 2008 in Glenmore.
After he failed to appear at a sitting of New Ross District Court to face the charges in April 2009, a judge issued a bench warrant for his arrest.
Speaking to media during a press conference via video link yesterday, his legal representative, Attorney Ogor Okoye of BOS Legal Group, said she had only become aware of a case through the media.
When asked by RTÉ News if Mr Culleton had any interactions with law enforcement either in Ireland or the US prior to his dealings with ICE, she indicated that she had just become aware of a claim around an incident in Ireland.
"This is the first time that we are hearing about that," she said.
Ms Okoye said the claim related to a warrant issued in Ireland in April 2009.
But she noted: "Mr Culleton has been in the States since March 2009 and will not be aware of any warrant that happened after he came to the United States."
She added: "A warrant is not a conviction, a warrant is not a criminal entry, so I will leave it at that until I understand the specific facts of the case."
She said she had not spoken to Mr Culleton about the claims.
Ms Okoye said that Mr Culleton went to the US under a visa-waiver programme in March 2009, after which he failed to depart after the 90-day limit.
She said that, despite now being married to a US citizen and in the process of getting a Green Card, he does not have a right to appear before an immigration judge.
As part of the visa-waiver programme, he renounced his right to contest any attempt by the US government to remove him from the country other than on the basis of an application for asylum.
Ms Okoye said that Mr Culleton had established a life in the US, opened a business, and had made "significant contributions to his local community".
"He has strong familial and community ties in Massachusetts, he has no criminal entry in his record since coming to the United States," she added.
She said he missed two interviews for his Green Card in November and December due to being detained.
Ms Okoye said Mr Culleton's health has deteriorated since he was detained in September, noting he had lost "30 or 40 pounds" and that he "looked yellow" when she saw him last.
She called for his immediate release so he can continue the process of obtaining a Green Card.
'I just want him home', says Culleton's wife
Mr Culleton’s wife, Tiffany Smyth, told those on the call that his detention has been "overwhelming".
"Life has just been on hold for the past five months. I want Seamus home where he belongs and us to be able to finish what we started," she said.
"I just want him home, I want him safe. Seamus is a good man and he doesn’t deserve what is going on."
Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs in the US Department of Homeland Security Tricia McLaughlin said that Mr Culleton had received "due process" since his detention, and that he was issued a final order of removal by an immigration judge in September 2025.
In a post on X, she said he was offered the chance to be removed to Ireland but "chose to stay in ICE custody, in fact he took affirmative steps to remain in detention".
Yesterday, Minister for Foreign Affairs Helen McEntee said the Government had been in touch with the US Department of Homeland Security over his case.
Speaking to reporters in Brussels, Ms McEntee said it was "important to say we can't interfere in another country's immigration laws".
"What we can do is certainly make the case where there are issues brought to our concern, whether it's around where he currently is, or the situation he finds himself in, and that's what we've been engaging on, and we will continue to support him."
She added: "I can't imagine what he's going through, and I know that this is particularly devastating for him and for his family.
"We're aware of the case, and my department and teams on the ground have been working with them for some time now.
"What we can do is provide consular assistance. What we can do is engage with Homeland Security, which we have."
Additional reporting Paul Reynolds, Jackie Fox
