Cambodian Man Freed from African Prison After Controversial US Deportation

A Cambodian man who was deported by the US to an African nation under Trump's third-country program has been released from prison and is heading home. Pheap Rom was among 19 migrants sent to Eswatini since July as part of a controversial deportation strategy.

A Cambodian man who was sent to an African kingdom through the United States’ controversial third-country deportation program has been freed from detention and is returning to his homeland, according to his attorney.

Pheap Rom was released Wednesday from a high-security detention facility in Eswatini, where he had been held since his October deportation from the United States. His American attorney, Tin Thanh Nguyen, confirmed to The Associated Press that Rom was scheduled to board a commercial aircraft to Johannesburg, South Africa, beginning his return journey to Cambodia.

Rom represents one of 19 individuals from various nations who have been transported to Eswatini across three separate deportation operations beginning in July. He becomes only the second person from this group to be sent back to his country of origin.

The deportation initiative reflects President Donald Trump’s strict immigration enforcement policies, with approximately 300 migrants being sent to nations with which they have no connection through this third-country arrangement. Legal advocates have condemned the program as violations of international law.

American officials have negotiated agreements with a minimum of seven African countries to accept these deportees. Documentation from the State Department reveals the United States provided Eswatini with $5.1 million in exchange for accepting as many as 160 individuals.

According to Nguyen, Rom had completed a 15-year incarceration period in America for an attempted murder conviction before his release in late 2024. The attorney stated that Rom’s five-month detention in Eswatini was unlawful since he faced no criminal accusations in that African nation.