Ho Yin Mo, a field representative in San Francisco Assemblymember Catherine Stefani’s office who was detained by immigrarion agents on Sept. 17 in Las Vegas, was released from custody today, according to Stefani’s office.
Mo was granted bond by an immigration judge in a hearing in a court in Las Vegas on Wednesday.
“I’m overwhelmed with gratitude for the tireless work of Assemblymember Stafeni, my legal counsel and every individual who advocated on my behalf,” Mo said in a press release from Stefani’s office. “I’m excited to return to my work serving San Franciscans, who have shown time and again what community truly means.”
Dee Sull, Mo’s attorney, said, “The Trump administration has placed people into removal proceedings even while they were lawfully pursuing their immigration status in the United States, causing chaos for individuals and families who followed the rules.”
Stefani said in the statement that she’s grateful “to everyone preparing to fight alongside him as he continues through the immigration process.”
“He is a lawful public servant” who, she said, “should never have been detained.”
Mo, a Hong Kong native who lawfully entered the country on a temporary basis on Jan. 13, 2020, was detained after he failedto depart by May 15, 2020, according to a statement by the Department of Homeland Security.
Immigration experts and friends of Mo, however, said the government omitted a vital detail: It’s highly likely that Mo is covered by Deferred Enforced Departure, a Biden-era presidential directive that allows eligible Hong Kong residents to work in the United States and protects them from deportation until 2027.
Mo was previously a primetime anchor for Chinese-language TV station KTSF, and worked as a field organizer for Mayor London Breed’s 2024 campaign. Almost every politician in San Francisco City Hall had called for his release.
His colleague established a GoFundMe to cover legal expenses.
