One of Peanut the Squirrel’s former owners was detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement last month and remains in federal custody pending a possible deportation to Germany.
Daniela Bittner, 30, was arrested at New York’s Elmira Corning Regional Airport on Oct. 15 because she “chose to overstay her welcome in defiance of our nation’s laws,” a Department of Homeland Security spokesperson told the Washington Examiner.
Bittner, whom DHS called an “illegal alien,” legally entered the United States multiple times between May 2021 and November 2022 and had permission to stay in the country temporarily. The department maintained that a pending immigration application does not automatically grant U.S. legal status.
“She will remain in ICE custody pending removal proceedings and will receive due process,” the spokesperson said.
Bittner’s husband, Mark Longo, said she is being held in Texas after going through multiple detention sites. Longo said his wife was detained due to an immigration paperwork mix-up.
“You’re telling me, all of this because my wife and I forgot to do the proper form?” Longo said, per the Associated Press.
The couple owned Peanut the Squirrel, also spelled P’Nut in some cases, until the viral pet’s death on Oct. 30, 2024. Peanut was euthanized by New York’s state government shortly after getting tested for rabies. The test ultimately yielded negative results.
The episode was used by Republicans on the campaign trail right before the 2024 presidential election. JD Vance seized on Peanut’s death at the time to make a point about illegal immigration, making Bittner’s arrest two years later deeply ironic.
“They put Peanut on a pedestal, won their election and threw him off that pedestal immediately,” Longo said.
He also expressed his frustration with the Trump administration, saying his wife didn’t deserve to be arrested.
Longo revealed he met with UFC President and CEO Dana White, a longtime friend of President Donald Trump, about Bittner’s recent arrest. He also disclosed that local officials are looking into his wife’s case.
The husband-and-wife duo runs an animal sanctuary, which Longo fears will have to shut down if Bittner is deported to Germany.
Longo claimed his spouse has been subjected to poor conditions in ICE custody, but DHS disputed those allegations.
In its statement on Bittner’s detention, DHS suggested she was violating a policy preventing illegal immigrants from flying around the country, which was why ICE arrested her at an airport.
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“DHS reversed the horrendous Biden-era policy that allowed aliens in our country illegally to jet around our country,” the spokesperson said. “Under President Trump, DHS will no longer tolerate this. This administration is working diligently to ensure that aliens in our country illegally can no longer fly unless it is out of our country to self-deport.”
The department urged people who overstayed their visas in the U.S. to deport themselves through the CBP Home App immediately rather than being forcibly removed from the country later.
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[ H/T Washington Examiner ]
