An 86-year-old French woman who relocated to the United States to reunite with and marry her sweetheart from the 1950s is currently being held in a crowded Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention center in Louisiana. Marie-Thérèse, from Brittany, was arrested by ICE agents, handcuffed, and shackled by her feet, sparking urgent concerns from her family about her deteriorating health and well-being.
Family Expresses Fear Over Health and Treatment
The family of Marie-Thérèse has voiced deep apprehension regarding her physical condition, emphasizing that she suffers from significant heart and back problems. One of her sons, speaking to the Ouest-France newspaper, described the treatment by ICE as akin to that of a hardened criminal, stating, "For us it’s urgent to get her out of the detention centre and bring her back to France. Given her health, she won’t last a month in such conditions of detention."
He revealed that the family received no information about their mother for an entire week following her arrest until French consular officials were permitted to visit her. According to reports, she is being detained alongside approximately 70 other individuals in the facility, exacerbating worries about her vulnerable state.
A Love Story Rekindled Across Decades
Marie-Thérèse's journey to the United States began last year when she decided to marry Billy, a former U.S. serviceman she initially fell in love with while working as a bilingual secretary at a NATO base near Saint-Nazaire, France, during the 1950s. Their romance was interrupted in 1966 when Billy returned to the United States after France, under President Charles de Gaulle, withdrew from NATO's integrated military command structure.
In 2010, the pair reconnected through social media while both were married to other people, leading to meetings between the two couples. After their respective spouses passed away, Marie-Thérèse announced in April 2025 that she would move to Anniston, Alabama, to marry Billy, whom her son described as "a charming, adorable man. They were like a couple of teenagers."
Legal Complications Following Tragic Loss
Tragedy struck when Billy, a retired U.S. Army colonel and helicopter pilot, died in January 2026. At that time, Marie-Thérèse had not yet obtained a green card, leaving her immigration status in a precarious and unclear position. Subsequently, she became embroiled in a dispute with one of her late husband's sons, who allegedly cut off essential utilities such as water, electricity, and internet at her home.
Marie-Thérèse had retained legal counsel to address the case, with a hearing scheduled at the local tribunal. However, on April 1, just eight days before the court date, ICE agents arrived to arrest her. Her son noted, "The neighbours went to the court for the hearing and said our mother would have won," highlighting the unfortunate timing of her detention.
Resilience Amidst Adversity
Despite the challenging circumstances, Marie-Thérèse has shown remarkable fortitude. Her son remarked, "She’s holding up. Our mother’s a fighter; a force of nature. The others being held call her unsinkable." He added, "It’s like a bad scene from an American film. Every morning, I wake saying it can’t be true, that I’ve had a nightmare," capturing the surreal and distressing nature of the situation.
Broader Diplomatic Tensions
This incident occurs against a backdrop of strained relations between Paris and Washington. French President Emmanuel Macron has recently criticized former U.S. President Donald Trump's stance on Iran, describing attempts to open the Strait of Hormuz by force as "unrealistic." While not directly linked, these diplomatic frictions may influence the context of consular efforts to secure Marie-Thérèse's release.
French consular officials are actively working to facilitate her release and return to France, as her family continues to advocate for her swift removal from the detention center due to grave health concerns.
