Ex-Colts linebacker Daniel Adongo deported after ICE detention, officials confirm - USA Today

What the report says

USA Today reported that federal immigration authorities have deported Daniel Adongo, a former Indianapolis Colts linebacker who came to American football after a professional rugby career in Kenya and South Africa. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement confirmed that Adongo, 37, was removed from the United States on June 20 after a Justice Department immigration judge ordered his removal in March.

According to ICE, Adongo had been detained for months and was held without bond under the Laken Riley Act. The agency said he overstayed his visa in 2016, after his NFL career ended. USA Today reported that ICE listed one conviction: a 2020 Class A misdemeanor criminal mischief case that resulted in a 364-day jail sentence. Other arrests, including cases involving intimidation, battery and disorderly conduct, ended with dismissed charges.

The report also highlighted Adongo’s mental health history in Indiana courts. Records reviewed by the Indianapolis Star, part of the USA Today Network, showed judges twice found him incompetent to stand trial. In one filing cited by the report, a doctor described him as acutely psychotic and raised the possibility of a traumatic brain injury connected to his athletic career. Family members and social workers have expressed concern that his condition could be related to sports injuries, though USA Today noted such a link cannot be confirmed in a living patient.

Adongo’s NFL path was unusual: the Colts signed him in 2013 when he was 23 and had not previously played or watched American football. He appeared in five games across three seasons, playing one defensive snap, before Indianapolis waived him in December 2015.