ICE arrested a Nigerian national who had been canvassing for Pennsylvania Democratic congressional candidate Janelle Stelson after he pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct following a public exposure incident near a residential park. The Department of Homeland Security announced the arrest on October 7, and the timing could not be worse for Stelson in one of the tightest House races in the country.
DHS identified the man as Chimaobim Adedayo Igbojekwe. He was lawfully admitted to the U.S. in June 2017, but his authorized stay ended in November 2019. He stayed anyway, and the Biden administration handed him deferred action in September 2021. So, an overstayed visa, a Biden get-out-of-removal-free card, and then a seat in a parked car in Mechanicsburg with no pants on. Quite a resume.
East Pennsboro Township police arrested Igbojekwe on September 27 after residents reported a man sitting in a vehicle for several hours near a park. When an officer made contact, Igbojekwe opened the car door wearing only a shirt, his genitals fully exposed. He told police he was there to hand out campaign flyers for Stelson and pointed to literature inside the vehicle. Nothing says “get out the vote” quite like that, apparently.
He was initially charged with indecent exposure and disorderly conduct. The indecent-exposure charge and one disorderly-conduct count were later withdrawn, and he pleaded guilty to a single third-degree misdemeanor count of disorderly conduct. An immigration detainer was filed, and ICE took him into custody on October 1 after his release from Cumberland County Prison. You can find more details about the ICE arrest and Pennsylvania campaign in the original reporting.
ICE Deputy Director Charles Wall did not mince words. It’s unbelievable that Janelle Stelson would employ an illegal alien to work on a Congressional campaign, let alone a pervert who exposed himself in public,” Wall said. He added that the Trump Administration “will always put the safety of the American people first.
Stelson’s campaign pushed back hard. “This individual is not and has never been employed by the Janelle Stelson campaign,” campaign manager Alma Baker said. If he is an illegal immigrant who committed a crime he should be deported. We never heard of him prior to the news of his arrest.” DHS cited local reporting that Igbojekwe had been canvassing for the campaign at the time of the incident, so somebody’s story has some explaining to do.
Stelson, a former local TV anchor, is challenging Republican Representative Scott Perry in a rematch of the 2024 race, which Perry won by roughly one percentage point. The race is considered one of the nation’s closest midterm contests and could help decide which party controls the House. Perry’s team probably did not expect this particular October surprise, but here we are.
Whether DHS pursues removal and how the Stelson campaign weathers the story will play out in the coming weeks, right before Election Day. Drop your thoughts in the comments or share this on social media.
