WESTMINSTER, Md. — A 25-year-old woman identified as Nayeli was arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents at Carroll County District Court on Sept. 29, just before a hearing on misdemeanor charges stemming from a $12.08 purchase made with her former employer’s credit card. Nayeli said she did not realize the company card remained connected to her McDonald’s app when she bought a meal. Her mother repaid the money the next day, according to records and a payment screenshot reviewed by the woman’s attorney and a local news organization. The Carroll County Sheriff’s Office investigated but did not file charges. Her former boss, Rasheed Haroon, later sought charges through Maryland’s district court commissioner system. Nayeli and her family said four plainclothes officers approached her as she waited outside the courtroom with her parents. They did not identify themselves at first, she said. She realized they were ICE agents after they took her into a vestibule and discussed how to make the arrest. Her mother, who was nearby, said the officers did not show an arrest warrant. The agents handcuffed Nayeli and took her to an ICE vehicle. Her lawyer told the judge that her client had been taken from the courthouse hallway. The judge replied, according to a courtroom audio recording, “I don’t know what you want me to do about that,” adding, “It’s not my hallway.” Nayeli could not attend the hearing. The theft charges were dismissed, known in Maryland as being “nolle prossed.” Before the hearing, a Carroll County prosecutor had offered to pause the case if she agreed to community service and not to use Haroon’s card again. ICE said Nayeli was a Honduran national arrested in a “targeted operation” and cited a theft arrest and charge in Carroll County. Court records show she received a summons and was not arrested by the sheriff’s office, and the theft case was initiated through the commissioner process. Her family said she had no prior criminal record. ICE did not respond to follow-up questions about its statement. Nayeli had a pending asylum case and permission to remain in the United States while her proceedings continued, according to court records. An immigration judge denied her asylum application in July 2025, and her case was pending before the Board of Immigration Appeals. ICE appears to be relying on the Laken Riley Act, which requires detention for some immigrants accused of theft and other offenses. At the time of the account, Nayeli had been held for about two weeks at the Caroline Detention Facility in Bowling Green, Virginia. Her lawyer had filed a habeas corpus petition, which was assigned to U.S. District Judge George L. Russell III. The arrest followed a dispute between Nayeli and Haroon after she left his auto repair shop near Sykesville, where she had worked for about four years. In June, Nayeli sought a peace order, saying Haroon’s calls, messages and visits made her uncomfortable. A judge declined to issue a final order, but warned Haroon to stop contacting her. Nayeli also said he had delayed her final paycheck; a screenshot showed a $1,650 check was returned unpaid. After Nayeli quit, Haroon told sheriff’s deputies about the $12.08 purchase. When they did not file charges, he applied directly to a district court commissioner, who approved misdemeanor allegations of theft under $100 and unauthorized use of a credit card. The commissioner system allows people to seek criminal charges based on their own statements, without an investigation by the commissioner, and has faced criticism for the potential for abuse. Haroon denied responsibility for Nayeli’s ICE arrest, saying police had directed him to file charges. Prosecutor Mitchell “Craig” Wolf did not say how ICE learned of the hearing. Before the arrest, Nayeli’s lawyer had told Wolf in an email that her client feared being detained at court because of Haroon’s threats to contact immigration authorities. Wolf did not respond to questions about whether his office contacted ICE before the hearing. Maryland has adopted measures addressing immigration enforcement in sensitive locations, including courthouses, but state guidance offers limited protections against federal enforcement. A district court regulation effective Oct. 1 advises officers seeking to serve a warrant to present it to courthouse security and wait until proceedings end; it does not specify what should happen if agents do not present a warrant. Nayeli’s lawyer, Kate DeNobile, said courthouse arrests could deter people from attending hearings or reporting safety concerns. “People may not want to press criminal charges, they might not want to file for protective orders or otherwise report community safety concerns because they fear being picked up by immigration enforcement for doing so,” she said. Nayeli told a reporter from detention that she was frustrated she had not been able to contest the theft allegations in court. She had been working at a car dealership and saving to study business at a community college before her arrest.