Marie-Thérèse, an 85-year-old French woman from Le Pouliguen (Loire-Atlantique), who was married to an American and deported in January, has returned to France this morning, which is a source of satisfaction for us,” said Jean-Noël Barrot to the press during a visit to Montpellier.
The American Ministry of Homeland Security confirmed on Tuesday to AFP the arrest on April 1st of the 85-year-old woman who entered the United States in June 2025 with a tourist visa allowing her to stay “90 days” on American soil. However, she was still in the United States “seven months later,” according to American authorities.
Witness accounts from neighbors reported by her son Hervé, interviewed by AFP on Monday, stated that the 85-year-old woman, who was living in Alabama, was “arrested, handcuffed hands and feet.” When asked about ICE methods, and not specifically referring to the case of the 85-year-old woman, Jean-Noël Barrot stated that these are not necessarily methods that are in compliance – I am not talking about the specific case but more generally – with those that are in effect and acceptable to us. “There have been instances of violence that have raised our concern. But the main thing is that she is back in France and that satisfies us completely,” he said.
