Milo Yiannopoulos, anti-immigrant provocateur who pushed for ICE checkpoints, deported to UK
The Department of Homeland Security has deported Milo Yiannopoulos, the far-right provocateur who called for ICE checkpoints and “on the spot” deportations, the agency confirmed to USA TODAY on Aug. 29.
“On August 28, ICE deported Milo Yiannopoulos, an illegal alien from the United Kingdom, back to his home country,” DHS said in a statement.
ICE arrested Yiannopoulos at Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport in Kenner, Louisiana, a day before his removal. He entered the U.S. legally on May 14, 2019, through New York City, and “chose to overstay his welcome in violation of our nation’s laws,” DHS said.
Yiannopoulos had been ordered removed by an immigration judge on July 22 after he failed to show up for his immigration hearing.
The deportation is a striking turn for a figure who rose to prominence in conservative media before Donald Trump’s first term. While working for Breitbart News, Yiannopoulos amplified neo-Nazi and white nationalist voices and built a following as a campus provocateur, attacking feminism, Islam, Black Lives Matter and transgender rights during a string of controversial speaking tours.
More recently, he aligned himself with the rapper formerly known as Kanye West. Yiannopoulos worked with him on and off from 2022 and served as West’s campaign manager during West’s 2024 presidential campaign. He was in Louisiana ahead of a concert West headlined on Aug. 28.
His removal came just months after Yiannopoulos publicly embraced ICE and called for tougher enforcement. In June 2025, he posted on X: “California needs ICE checkpoints at supermarket entrances, gas stations, strip malls, intersections and government buildings, with on the spot deportation for anyone who can’t prove they are in the US legally.”
In another post on Jan. 25, 2025, he said, “If ICE has 90,000 employees, and all we are asking for is 10,000 deportations a day, that’s 9 agents per illegal. More than enough to cover investigation, apprehension and removal. What are they all waiting for?”
The case adds a high-profile example to the federal government’s removal docket and underscores how immigration enforcement can reach even those who have been vocal advocates of restrictive border policies.
Contributing: Michael Loria
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Milo Yiannopoulos, anti-immigrant provocateur who pushed for ICE checkpoints, deported to UK