According to Vincent Jobo’s attorney, he was in the U.S. from South Africa on a visa to play rugby.
AUSTIN, Texas — Legal battles over immigration statutes are on the rise as the Trump administration ramps up its Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operations.
This week, the Texas Civil Rights Project (TCPR) filed a writ of habeas corpus on behalf on a man who’s been in ICE custody for more than a year at the Pearsall Detention Center near San Antonio.
The petition states in that time frame, there has been zero intent to either deport Vincent Jobo, who’s originally from South Africa, or release him.
”I think Vincent’s case is an example of the limbo that we trapped immigrants in and how that limbo is expanding substantially right now, especially in Texas, which has the most number of immigration detention beds than any other state,” said TCRP Senior Supervising Attorney Daniel Hatoum.
According to ICE’s website, Texas has 21 detention centers.
Jobo was initially in the U.S. on a visa to play professional rugby. He played for the Austin Blacks and New Orleans Gold, according to court documents. However, Jobo’s visa lapsed when he reportedly left the team in 2019, and he faced deportation.
Hatoum said Jobo was never deported back to his home country, and lived in Austin until 2023. It wasn’t until he was arrested and charged in Kinney County in 2023 for human smuggling that he was taken into custody by ICE officers.
KVUE spoke with officials at the county clerk’s office Friday, who confirmed that case was rejected. Despite applying for asylum to South Africa in July 2024, a judge denied Jobo and officially ordered his deportation that October.
Since then, Jobo’s status has been in limbo due to the South African government being unable to identify him or match his fingerprints, leaving them and the U.S. government at a standstill.
According to Austin-based immigration attorney Vi Nanthaveth, from the details laid out in the petition, Jobo has the right to request a release under supervision.
It comes down to whether there is proof a person is being held indefinitely without good reason, and if that person can prove they’re not a danger to society if released under supervision.
“If everything that’s alleged in the writ is correct and true, then a judge that is fair should be able to rule positively on this,” said Nanthaveth. “But it’s going to come down to whether or not the government has some other facts that they are able to bring up that would prevent them to do so.”
KVUE also reached out to ICE officials on the status of Jobo’s case, but did not receive a response at the time of publication.
As the Trump administration pushes for more immigration enforcement nationwide, Nanthaveth pointed to detention centers becoming overwhelmed, as well as the federal government and ICE itself, which could impact long-stand cases like Jobo’s.
“If you don’t have enough hands on it, if you don’t have enough people that are able to do this properly, it’s a little hard to make a determination right now as to whether or not we’re going to see that light at the end of the tunnel anytime soon,” said Nanthaveth.