Meet Jasmine Mooney, the American Pie actress detained by ICE: the Canadian entrepreneur behind Holy! Water described her experience as ‘deeply disturbing’ and has since returned home safely
Canadian actress and entrepreneur Jasmine Mooney – who once starred in the American Pie franchise – says she was forced to stay awake ‘for 24 hours wrapped in chains’ during her detention
Canadian entrepreneur Jasmine Mooney – who once starred in American Pie franchise – has returned home safely after being detained for nearly two weeks by immigration officials in the United States, reports CBC.
Mooney’s mother, Alexis Eagles, confirmed on Saturday that her daughter had landed at the Vancouver International Airport at around midnight, where she was greeted by her friends and family.
Mooney has since shared a post to her Instagram Story highlights citing her experience as a “deeply disturbing psychological experiment”. The 35-year-old said that she “began writing an essay” about her time there and would be sharing it soon. “I’m choosing to use my voice in the hope that it can help others,” she wrote in her post.
The entrepreneur was arrested in the US by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents for having “an incomplete visa” after crossing the San Ysidro border between Mexico and San Diego on March 3, notes The Independent.
Mooney told ABC’s 10 News San Diego what it was like at the Otay Mesa Detention Center. “I was put in a cell, and I had to sleep on a mat with no blanket, no pillow, with an aluminium foil wrapped over my body like a dead body for two and a half days,” she said. She added that her and 30 other women were then relocated to Arizona late in the night. “We were up for 24 hours wrapped in chains.”
Where is Jasmine Mooney from?
Mooney was born and raised in Yukon, Canada, per Yukon News. She grew up in Whitehorse and had been living in California recently for work. She had been trying to renew her US visa at the Tijuana border crossing in Mexico, her father, Stephen Mooney, told the media outlet. When the visa was denied, ICE detained her. “It’s a common practice to be pulled aside,” he said, “sometimes they want to check some credentials out, and they pulled her aside. But then this extended into hours in a facility right at the border, and then being held for two days in Tijuana, then moved up to San Diego for another three days, and then now moved to Arizona, and she is on day 11 today.”