By Daily Mail (U.S.) | Created at 2026-08-13 00:32:33 | Updated at 2026-08-13 01:22:52
59 minutes ago
An Iraqi man charged with attacking an anti-Muslim activist at a Michigan protest is a convicted murderer who is in the US illegally, according to US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
Abbas Abdoush was arrested by immigration authorities and is facing deportation following his release from jail where he was being held in connection with the beating of Jake Lang.
Abdoush, 57, was charged with assault among other offenses after Lang was attacked in Dearborn on August 2.
Lang was protesting a religious Muslim celebration and was seen chanting into a bullhorn: 'We support ICE. We do not want these illegal immigrants here. I speak the name of Jesus.'
Video appeared to show Abdoush and others pummeling him amid a violent clash.
Days after the beating, a judge arraigned Abdoush on the charges but released him on a tether.
He was barely out of jail when Homeland Security Investigations agents picked him up the same day he was released and then transferred him to ICE custody, officials told the Detroit News.
The agency has since revealed Abdoush is 'a criminal illegal alien from Iraq' who was convicted of murdering a woman in 1999.
Abbas Abdoush, 57, was charged with assault, battery and malicious destruction of property in connection with the beating of anti-Muslim activist Jake Lang on August 2 in Dearborn, Michigan
Lang, 31, stood near a Muslim religious celebration chanting into a bullhorn: 'We support ICE. We do not want these illegal immigrants here. I speak the name of Jesus.' He is pictured holding a sign calling for Muslims to be deported
Lang (pictured at a Minneapolis rally, January 17) was one of the more than 1,500 Capitol riot defendants pardoned by President Trump last year. Despite being attacked, he said he is planning another protest against Muslims in Dearborn on August 18
'Abdoush was legally admitted to the United States in 1992 and eventually became an LPR [lawful permanent resident]. He later violated the terms of that legal admission following a 1999 conviction for murder,' a statement from ICE read.
The agency said he was ordered removed from the United States in 2022, but he appealed the ruling, and the case remains pending before the Board of Immigration Appeals.
His murder conviction was handed down after Abdoush killed a woman by intentionally striking her with his vehicle in southwest Detroit on January 25, 1998, according to court records.
'Two witnesses observed the victim standing on Michigan Avenue in Detroit, talking to someone in a van,' the appellate court said.
'As the victim walked away from the van, the driver attempted to hit her. The van continued on Michigan Avenue, made a U-turn, came back toward the victim at a high rate of speed, hit the victim, ran over her, and continued driving.'
According to appellate court records, police found the victim lying face down in the street and gurgling. Four days later, she suffered a stroke and died.
He was imprisoned from May 1999 to June 2014 before being paroled, Michigan Department of Corrections spokesperson Jenni Riehle told the Detroit Free Press.
Abdoush is now back in custody at the North Lake Processing Center in Baldwin, Michigan, immigration officials said.
Abdoush was arrested by police but was released on a tether before he was picked up by Homeland Security Investigations agents up and then transferred him to ICE custody
Abdoush (pictured in the flannel appearing to strike Lang) killed a woman on January 25, 1998, after intentionally hitting her with his vehicle in southwest Detroit, according to court records. He was legally admitted to the United States in 1992 but violated the terms of that legal admission following a 1999 conviction for murder according to ICE
Dearborn police spokesman CPl Dan Bartok told the Free Press that police 'did not collaborate or work with HSI, ICE, or any other federal agency' on Abdoush's arrest and detention.
The Dearborn Police Department has a policy of not cooperating with federal immigration agencies.
'He was taken into custody by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement, likely due to his tether,' Bartok added.
Abdoush is expected to be arraigned in Dearborn's 19th District Court on September 21.
In addition to the assault charge, he faces charges of battery and malicious destruction of property.
Lang, a pardoned January 6 rioter who served four years in prison, claimed he is suing Dearborn, its mayor and its police chief for failing to protect him.
ICE called Abdoush 'a criminal illegal alien from Iraq' and revealed his history of violence in a statement (ICE agents pictured standing near protestors at the Delaney Hall detention center in Newark, New Jersey)
Chief Issa Shahin of the Dearborn Police Department appeared to acknowledge Lang's return and urged residents to not engage with the provocateur
The 31-year-old activist, who is from Florida and is running for US Senate, has said that if elected he would 'ban Islam.'
Despite being attacked on several occasions, Lang said he is planning another protest against Muslims in Dearborn on August 18.
Chief Issa Shahin of the Dearborn Police Department appeared to acknowledge Lang's return back to the city by urging residents to stay home and not 'confront individuals and groups from outside' their community.
He also released the statement in Arabic.
The Daily Mail has reached out to ICE, HSI, the Dearborn Police Department and Jake Lang for comment.
