Advocates say some non-citizen service members are being detained despite policies that say immigration officials should take military service into consideration. TACOMA, Wash. — A U.S. Army veteran who spent more than four months detained at an immigration detention center in Tacoma says he believed his military service would protect him from deportation. Instead, Zahid Chaudhry found himself locked inside the Northwest ICE Processing Center. “124 days,” Chaudhry said with a laugh. “Who is counting.” The Lacey resident, originally from Pakistan, said the experience was shocking. “Shocking, surprising, painful,” Chaudhry said. “It’s a sacred understanding between the country and its veteran.” Chaudhry has lived in the United States for nearly 30 years as a lawful permanent resident. Last year, he was just one interview and a ceremony away from becoming a U.S. citizen. But in August 2025, during that interview at the Homeland Security field office in Tukwila, Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers arrested him. “I’m qualified for expedited military naturalization,” Chaudhry said. “My kids are here; American citizens. My wife is an American citizen. Her father was a U.S. Navy commander. How could this be happening to me?” ICE said Chaudhry was taken into custody because he allegedly failed to disclose parts of his criminal history in Australia from the early 1990s, including charges involving financial deception, possession of stolen goods and falsifying passports. Before coming to the United States, Chaudhry had moved from Pakistan to Australia, where he initially worked as a taxi driver. According to his wife, Melissa Chaudhry, he was accused of possessing a passenger’s passport. She said he was pressured to accept a plea deal. “They wouldn’t let him go that day until he signed away whatever they put against him,” she said. “That’s the coerced plea deal that DHS is now picking up.” Chaudhry's case highlights a common misconception about immigration and military service. Military service does not automatically guarantee the service member's U.S. citizenship. According to congressional research, more than 40,000 current members of the U.S. military are not U.S. citizens. A 2025 Department of Homeland Security memo states that military service alone does not automatically exempt someone from immigration enforcement. However, the memo also says officers should consider a person’s military service when deciding how to proceed with enforcement, particularly when weighing criminal history. The policy prioritizes deportation of veterans who have committed violent crimes. Chaudhry's alleged offenses are non-violent. Eric Ard with About Face, a veterans support organization, said Chaudhry's situation reflects a broader issue affecting non-citizen veterans. “We met so many more veterans who have not been released,” Ard said. The organization says it currently knows of three veterans in ICE custody nationwide, though advocates believe the number could be higher. Some have already been deported. Ard said immigrants have long served in the U.S. military, often while navigating immigration systems. “They have a very complex history with loving their country that doesn’t always love them back,” Ard said. After nearly 18 weeks in detention, Chaudhry was released in December 2025. A federal judge ruled he had been wrongfully detained because his deportation order is still under appeal. The judge granted Chaudhry's habeas petition. Chaudhry has since returned home to his family. His wife said their daughter constantly asked when her father would come home. “She would ask me, ‘Mama, have you got Baba home yet?’” Melissa Chaudhry said. “Those weeks felt endless.” For Chaudhry, the fight is no longer just about his own citizenship case. Instead, he said it is about the principle of whether military service is truly valued in immigration decisions. “It’s about defending the U.S. Constitution,” Chaudhry said. “If I don’t stand up, the people who come after me ... people will have no constitutional rights, whether they have served or not served.” Chaudhry's immigration case is still ongoing, and his family said they remain hopeful he will eventually complete the naturalization process he began.