Far-right British provocateur Milo Yiannopoulos arrested by US immigration enforcement

U.S. Immigration officials arrested British far-right commentator Milo Yiannopoulos in New Orleans on Thursday, according to the Department of Homeland Security. The controversial figure was apprehended at Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport on Friday and charged with illegally entering the United States in May 2019 from New York City.

An immigration judge issued a final order for Yiannopoulos' removal on July 22 after he missed his immigration hearing, a DHS spokesperson confirmed. "He chose to overstay his welcome in violation of our nation's laws," the DHS official stated. Yiannopoulos, who is currently being held, has not been located by ICE's online detainee locator but is being held at an office in Alexandria, Louisiana.

It remains unclear whether he has legal representation. The British national has been associated with conservative figures, including rapper Kanye West, who is set to perform in New Orleans on Friday. Yiannopoulos has been known for his provocative stances on issues such as feminism, Islam, and immigration, often advocating for limited immigration to the U.S. for the next 20 years.

He gained prominence in the early 2010s as a writer for Breitbart News before leaving the company in 2017 following a controversial video of him endorsing pedophilia. Yiannopoulos has faced backlash and controversy throughout his career, with critics accusing him of hate speech and promoting white nationalism.