DHS detains Sri Lankan-born U.S. Professor, calls him ‘sex offender’
U.S. immigration agents said they arrested a Ferris State University professor originally from Sri Lanka who has a criminal history that includes death threats and conviction in a case involving a juvenile, the Detroit news reported.
Sumith Gunasekera was arrested by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers on Nov. 12 in Detroit, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said in a press release on late November.Gunasekera is an assistant professor of marketing at Ferris State, in Big Rapids, Michigan, according to the university’s website. He holds a bachelor’s degree in physics from the University of Colombo in Sri Lanka and a Ph.D. in statistics from the University of Nevada.”Ferris State University leaders on Tuesday became aware of accusations regarding professor Sumith Gunasekera,” said Dave Murray, FSU associate vice president for Marketing and Communications Dave Murray said in a statement. “He has been placed on administrative leave while the university gathers more information. This is a personnel issue and it would be inappropriate for the university to further discuss the matter.”
Federal authorities said Gunasekera entered the U.S. in February 1998, then went to Canada. In August 1998, he was arrested by police in Brampton, Ontario, and accused of making death threats.Three days later he was arrested again in Canada on charges of invitation to sexual touching and sexual interference. DHS said Gunasekera admitted to officers that this case involved a minor. He was convicted in November 1998 and sentenced to one month behind bars and one year of probation.
He was also arrested in September 2003 by law enforcement in Las Vegas and accused of open and gross lewdness, DHS said. He was convicted in January 2004 of disorderly conduct.“It’s sickening that a sex offender was working as a professor on an American college campus and was given access to vulnerable students to potentially victimize them,” said DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin. “Thanks to the brave ICE law enforcement officers, this sicko is behind bars and no longer able to prey on Americans.”
Authorities said Gunasekera had been in the U.S. on a student visa. When he applied for a change of status with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, authorities realized he had been convicted of crimes in Canada.”Over the years Gunasekera repeatedly attempted to manipulate our immigration system between applications, denials, and appeals despite the convictions in Canada that made him ineligible for legal status in the United States,” DHS said in the release.
Officials said he remains in ICE custody as he awaits immigration proceedings.
