It's Always a Hoax

A Skokie woman made headlines this week after her family and a local politician claimed the U.S. Department of Homeland Security detained her for nearly 48 hours before she ultimately ended up in Wisconsin — an extraordinary story disputed by accounts from the federal government, two sheriff’s departments and her purported employer.

Summer Sundas “Sunny” Naqvi’s family alleges the 28-year-old woman was taken into custody Thursday morning at O’Hare International Airport after arriving on a flight from Istanbul. Naqvi, whom Cook County records show was born in Evanston, allegedly told her family that she was detained at the airport and then taken to Immigration and Customs Enforcement centers in two different states.

Cook County Commissioner Kevin Morrison, a family friend, told the Tribune that Naqvi was sent to an ICE facility in west suburban Broadview and, later, a Wisconsin jail that frequently houses Chicago-area detainees before she was released.

Sarah Afzal, the sister of Summer Sundas "Sunny" Naqvi, listens to Cook County Commissioner Kevin Morrison speak near the Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in Broadview, March 8, 2026. (Josh Boland/Chicago Tribune)

Sarah Afzal, the sister of Summer Sundas “Sunny” Naqvi, listens to Cook County Commissioner Kevin Morrison speak near the Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in Broadview, March 8, 2026. (Josh Boland/Chicago Tribune)

But in a statement Monday, a U.S. Customs and Border Protection spokesperson said that Naqvi had only been directed through additional security screening upon arriving at the Chicago airport Thursday and was cleared to leave. She “departed CBP” of her own volition less than two hours after landing, the statement said.

“The passenger’s claims are blatantly false,” said Harry Fones, principal deputy assistant secretary for public affairs for the Department of Homeland Security. “Ms. Naqvi departed CBP within 90 minutes of her arrival to the United States. Ms. Naqvi was not taken into custody or transferred to ICE for detention.”

In a social media post Wednesday evening, DHS shared two still images to bolster their account of Naqvi’s interaction with O’Hare immigration in a so-called secondary inspection room. The first, marked March 5 at 10:46 a.m., showed a young woman with black hair in a fluorescent-lit area lined with benches. The second, stamped 11:42 a.m., shows a figure with similarly dark hair facing away from the cameras and going through a door marked EXIT.