DHS detained — then released — a Columbia University ‘studytok’ influencer
The Verge
February 26, 2026
Students are seen on the campus of Columbia University on April 14, 2025, in New York City. (Photo by CHARLY TRIBALLEAU/AFP via Getty Images) | AFP via Getty Images
Columbia University said Department of Homeland Security agents "made misrepresentations" about searching for a missing person to gain access to a residential building and detain a student on Thursday. By the afternoon, the student had been released after New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani made a personal appeal to Donald Trump.
The Columbia Daily Spectator, the student newspaper, first reported that the student who was detained is neuroscience researcher Ellie Aghayeva. Aghayeva is also a content creator with more than 100,000 followers on Instagram and TikTok, and her identity as a student at Columbia is a core part of what she shares online. …
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Originally published on The Verge on 2/26/2026