Episcopal and immigrant rights groups held a press conference Saturday (local time), demanding the immediate release of Go Yeon-soo, 20, daughter of Rev. Kyrie Kim, an Episcopal priest.
The event, hosted by the Episcopal Diocese of New York, the Interfaith Center of New York and the New York Immigration Coalition, condemned the "wrongful and unjustified" detention.
Go first entered the United States on March 25, 2021, on an R-2 visa, which is a nonimmigrant visa granted to the spouse or unmarried children of a religious worker holding an R-1 visa.
She accompanied her mother, Rev. Kim, who is widely recognized as the first woman to be ordained as an Anglican priest in the Seoul Diocese of the Anglican Church of Korea.
Go enrolled as a freshman at Purdue University in August 2024, and her stay was extended through December 2025.
According to advocacy groups, Go appeared before an immigration judge on July 31 for what was expected to be a routine visa hearing. The judge rescheduled her next court date for Oct. 21. However, as she exited the courtroom, five U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents detained her and placed her in custody.
Go has been denied bail and visitation rights and is currently being held at an ICE detention facility in New York, her legal representative said.
"This is simply an incomprehensible situation," Rev. Kim said in an interview with Yonhap News Agency following the press conference. "I’ve been active in protecting the rights of Korean immigrants through the New Sanctuary Coalition, but I never imagined that my own family would become a target."
Rev. Kim said she brought a change of clothes for her daughter but was not allowed to visit her, adding, "They told me she would be transferred to another detention facility, but I wasn’t informed when or where."
Lee Myung-seok, president of the Korean American Association of Greater New York, called the incident "a clear violation of human rights" and said the organization plans to submit a formal letter requesting Go’s release and to work with other Korean American groups to coordinate a response.
Korea’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said its diplomatic missions in the U.S. are offering consular support to Go.
"We are engaging in necessary communication with the U.S. side regarding this issue," a ministry official told The Korea Times.
This marks the second case in recent weeks involving the detention of a Korean national in the U.S.
On July 21, Tae Heung Will Kim, a green card holder and Texas resident, was detained by federal agents at San Francisco International Airport after undergoing additional security screening.
According to the National Korean American Service & Education Consortium, the U.S. has not provided a valid explanation for Kim’s detention.
Sharon Lee, Kim’s mother, called the situation "heartbreaking" during an online press conference Thursday, saying she has received no information about her son’s condition or exact whereabouts.
Kim’s attorney said he was held for more than a week at San Francisco International Airport before being transferred to an ICE facility in Arizona. Since the transfer, he has not been reachable, the attorney added.
The recent arrests have deepened unease within the Korean American community, which has voiced growing alarm over the Trump administration’s stance on immigration enforcement.