A University of Minnesota graduate business student has filed a lawsuit demanding his immediate release from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody, claiming that his arrest violated his rights and occurred with little explanation, according to court documents filed this week.
Doğukan Günaydın, 28, a Turkish citizen, was arrested by plainclothes federal officers on Thursday outside his St. Paul home while heading to class.
“Doğukan feared he was being kidnapped as a man in a hooded sweatshirt grabbed him and handcuffed him,” the legal petition states.
Hannah Brown, the lead attorney representing Günaydın, did not respond to a request for comment made by NTD News regarding the arrest. The Justice Department also did not respond to an inquiry.
The lawsuit contends that authorities held Günaydın for several hours without explanation except that his F-1 student visa was “retroactively revoked.” According to the petition, online records show his visa was terminated about seven hours after his arrest.
“Snatching up students who come here legally to work hard and get an education does not make you tough on immigration,” Walz wrote. “We need answers.”
The case has drawn attention from other elected officials in Minnesota, including Democratic U.S. Sens. Amy Klobuchar and Tina Smith, who are seeking an explanation from federal authorities.
State court records show Günaydın was previously arrested in Minneapolis in 2023 for driving erratically. A preliminary breath test measured his blood alcohol level at 0.2 percent, well above the legal 0.08 percent limit. A subsequent test in jail registered 0.17 percent, about 90 minutes after the arrest.
Günaydın pleaded guilty to a gross misdemeanor drunk driving charge, served four days in custody, and was ordered to complete one day of community service. His fines and court fees totaled $528, according to court documents.
His lawsuit argues that a drunk driving conviction is not a legal basis for terminating a student visa, citing a Department of Homeland Security list of termination reasons. The petition states that Günaydın has no other criminal convictions except for a 2021 speeding ticket from when he was an undergraduate at St. Olaf College.
According to the petition, after his conviction, Günaydın was accepted into the university’s Carlson School of Business with a scholarship and maintained a high grade-point average while taking a full course load.
Günaydın is being held at the Sherburne County Jail in Elk River and was told he would receive an immigration hearing on April 8, but his petition states he had not received any charging document or hearing notice as of the lawsuit’s filing.
“Without a charging document, Mr. Günaydın and counsel remain in the dark about the basis for his detention,” his attorney wrote in the petition.
“No reason was given. The University has received no information from ICE, and they have not requested any information from us,” Inch wrote in a letter to the campus community.
The State Department said earlier this month it would revoke visas of noncitizens deemed potential threats to foreign policy or national security interests.
“The United States has zero tolerance for foreign visitors who support terrorists. Violators of U.S. law, including international students, may face visa denial or revocation,” a spokesperson told NTD News.
