Pang Nhia Hang Bailey walked into a Detroit immigration office on July 30, 2025, for a routine check in she had done every year since 2007. ICE agents took her into custody that morning. Less than two weeks later, the 53 year old mother of four was on a military plane to Laos, a country she left before her second birthday.
Her husband Scott Bailey, an American citizen, waited in the lobby for two hours before an agent told him his wife would be deported. They had no chance to speak before ICE transferred her out of state.
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From Refugee to Deportee
Bailey was born in Laos in 1972. Her family fled to France within a year and resettled in the United States in 1978, when she was six years old.
Her path follows that of thousands of Hmong families who escaped Laos after the communist Pathet Lao seized power in 1975. The Hmong had spent over a decade fighting alongside American forces in the CIA backed Secret War, blocking supply lines, gathering intelligence, and rescuing downed U.S. pilots. When America pulled out of Southeast Asia, the new Lao government came after them.
Survivors crossed the Mekong River into Thailand and spent years in refugee camps. The U.S. eventually resettled nearly 200,000 refugees from Laos, including Hmong, Lao, Khmu, and Mien families.
Bailey built her life in Michigan. She married Scott in 1999 and raised four children, now ages 16 to 23.
A Conviction From 25 Years Ago
Her green card expired in 1995. In 2000, she and her husband faced bank fraud charges. Court records reviewed by Newsweek show she pleaded guilty that May. Immigration authorities revoked her status in 2007 and ordered her removal.
Every year after that, Bailey checked in with ICE. First by phone, later in person. For 18 years, those appointments ended the same way: she went home.
Laos had refused to accept deportees from the United States for decades. Without travel documents from the Lao government, ICE could not remove anyone. That changed in summer 2025 when the Trump administration imposed a partial travel ban on Laos and suspended visas for certain Lao nationals. Within weeks, Laos began issuing travel documents.
15 Hmong and Lao Refugees Detained the Same Day
Bailey was one of roughly 15 Hmong and Lao refugees taken into custody at the Detroit ICE field office that July morning. All had shown up for scheduled appointments expecting to go home afterward.
According to the Detroit News, every person arrested had an existing removal order and a criminal conviction, some over two decades old. ICE officials said they acted because Laos had started cooperating.
Michigan State Rep. Mai Xiong, the first Hmong American legislator in the state, said most of those detained were born in Thai refugee camps or left Laos before they could form any memories. They have no ties to the country and most do not speak Lao.
Deported in August
A U.S. Air Force C17 transport plane left Alexandria, Louisiana, on August 11 carrying deportees to Southeast Asia. The Department of Homeland Security confirmed Bailey’s removal two days later.
The DHS press release from August 13 named 12 people sent to Laos. Convictions among the group included drug trafficking, weapons offenses, and child sex crimes.
Bailey’s listed offense: bank fraud.
Adjusting to Life in Laos
Deportees were taken to a military compound in Vientiane, the Lao capital, where they had to secure a local sponsor before leaving.
Christine Sauve from the Michigan Immigrant Rights Center told reporters that families had heard from those deported and confirmed they arrived safely. A small nonprofit in Laos now assists Hmong deportees, though support remains limited.
Bailey has type 2 diabetes and requires regular medical attention. Her family launched a GoFundMe campaign to help cover expenses. As of early 2026, they have raised roughly $1,500 of a $7,500 goal.
Scott Bailey wrote on the fundraiser page that his wife has no memory of Laos.
Nearly five months after her deportation, Bailey has started a YouTube channel documenting her daily life there. In social media posts from late 2025, she said finding steady work has been difficult. Without reliable transportation, she has missed several job opportunities.
Her four children remain in Michigan with their father. Bailey hopes they will come looking for her when they are older.
Deportations to Laos Have Increased Sharply
Between October 2023 and September 2024, ICE removed zero people to Laos. That number jumped sharply in 2025 after the travel ban pressured the Lao government to cooperate.
Over 4,800 people with Lao removal orders currently live in the United States, according to the Asian Law Caucus. Many are Hmong refugees or their children who arrived decades ago.
Rep. Xiong has introduced a resolution in the Michigan legislature demanding transparency from ICE. At an August 2025 press conference, she said she does not feel safe and does not believe any Hmong American with an old removal order should either.
For Bailey, life in Laos continues. She posts videos, looks for work, and waits to hear from her children back in Michigan.
