Durham movie theater manager held by ICE after green card interview, family says
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- ICE detained Southpoint AMC manager moments after his green card interview.
- GoFundMe raised over $36,000 to cover legal fees, travel and family support.
- Lawyers advise self-deportation; motion to stay appears unlikely amid removal order.
The manager of the AMC Southpoint 17 movie theaters in Durham is on the verge of deportation after attending an interview to get his green card and ending up in ICE custody.
Mohamed Shama was detained by immigration agents Oct. 9 while interviewing with his wife, Maggie Shama, for a green card, Maggie wrote in a Facebook post Monday.
Maggie Shama went in for her interview first and was told that “unless [Mohamed] Shama answerd [sic] a question completely opposite of me, we were going to be approved.”
“I walked out feeling confident and gave [Mohamed] a smile and whispered, ‘We got this,’” Maggie wrote.
Then Mohamed Shama went in for his interview, Maggie Shama wrote. The interviewer took Maggie back to a supervisor’s office, which Maggie thought was because Mohamed been approved and they wanted to discuss next steps.
Instead of seeing Mohamed, Maggie saw the couple’s lawyer, who told her that “ICE took him.”
Maggie “confirmed this was a setup,” she wrote. ICE agents had arrived right as Mohamed finished his interview.
“We never got a chance to say goodbye,” Maggie wrote.
Mohamed Shama’s wife speaks out
In an interview with The News & Observer on Friday, Maggie Shama described Mohamed Shama, who is originally from Egypt, as someone with “pure joy” who finds amazement in even the simplest of things.
“He greets everybody as a potential friend,” Maggie said. “To be in his presence is to be surrounded by pure joy.”
The couple met in 2016 while she was a manager at the Southpoint AMC. Maggie said. Mohamed was a regular moviegoer, and the two bonded over their love for Disney movies. Everyone at the theater knew Mohamed and encouraged him to apply for an open manager position.
Maggie said she trained Mohamed as they slowly but surely started realizing their feelings for each other. By 2017, Maggie took a different job and made her relationship with Mohamed official. By 2018, they were married.
The two frequently travel to Disney World together — though Maggie said every time they go “it’s like the first time” for Mohamed. He is also a contractor for Disney and translates movies and shows into Arabic, Maggie said — he’s written subtitles for “The Mandalorian,” “Loki” and “Agatha All Along.” He also writes movie reviews in Arabic.
“We’re kids at heart,” Maggie said.
Maggie, who has a degree in theater, said she thinks she “created a monster” when she introduced Mohamed to Broadway. Soon, every morning, Mohamed played the opening of “Sweeney Todd” when he got ready for work.
Two of Maggie’s favorite musicals, “Ragtime” and “Chess,” came back on Broadway in recent weeks. Maggie and Mohamed had been planning to go to New York to watch them.
Asylum requests denied
Mohamed came to the United States around 2012 with his first wife, seeking his Ph.D. in pharmacy, Maggie said. But the two divorced, which complicated his status. Mohamed repeatedly applied for asylum but kept getting denied.
An order for Mohamed’s removal took effect in 2018 after he missed an immigration meeting, but Maggie said Mohamed “swears up and down” he never got a notice — possibly because the notice didn’t go to his new address after his divorce.
With Maggie as his petitioner for a green card, Mohamed decided to stay in the U.S. while challenging the order for removal, Maggie said. And after seven years, on Oct. 3, Mohamed got a letter about an interview for his green card. The interview was to make sure the couple’s marriage was real — which the interviewer determined it was, Maggie said.
“We really thought we were doing the right thing,” Maggie said. “We had the lawyer, we knew about the order to deport, but because we had the lawyer and [did] everything all along, nowhere in this process did she say, ‘Hey, guys, we’ve hit a snag.’”
The family’s lawyer and the interviewer at the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services office in Durham tried telling the officers that Mohamed had been approved to have his visa reinstated and obtain a green card, Maggie said. But Mohamed told Maggie that an ICE officer told him that didn’t matter and he had an order for removal.
Maggie has called Mohamed every day since Saturday — sometimes once a day, sometimes twice, she said. He’s sick but is getting the proper care and has made friends with other detainees, she said.
Filed motion to stay
A GoFundMe for Mohamed Shama had reached over $38,000 in donations as of Friday afternoon.
The money will cover Shama’s legal fees, travel costs in case he must self-deport, and financial support for his wife and two daughters.
The family has already filed a motion to stay, a request that seeks to prevent the Department of Homeland Security from deporting a non-citizen while they challenge their removal order, Maggie Shama wrote.
ICE detained Mohamed Shama “minutes” after the hold on his status was lifted, according to the GoFundMe description. He was to be taken to the Alamance County jail before being taken to Stewart Detention Center in Lumpkin, Georgia.
General manager of the year
Shama has tried to regain legal status ever since his divorce from his first wife, according to the GoFundMe.
He has worked with AMC for eight years, winning General Manager of the Year out of 600 in the country. He was recognized by former Durham Mayor Steve Schewel for his commitment to hiring individuals with special needs.
Mohamed always focused on what disabled employees could do rather than what they couldn’t, Maggie said. He allowed one employee with a wheelchair to work solely as a greeter. He allowed case workers to monitor workers with autism and to regularly check in if they needed anything.
“He’s always made sure that everybody deserves a chance, and if he can do it, he’s going to make it happen,” Maggie said.
Most of the attorneys Shama’s family and friends have consulted believe it would be best for him to self-deport and fight his case from Egypt, according to a GoFundMe update posted Thursday.
That will prevent Shama from being deported to a different country because deportation flights to Egypt are infrequent, according to the GoFundMe. Doctors also suspect Shama has long COVID, so a release from ICE custody would be better for his health.
The attorneys believe his motion to stay — what his longtime immigration lawyer recommended — will probably be denied because Shama has an order of removal, according to the GoFundMe.
DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin wrote in a Friday statement that Shama had overstayed his B-2 tourist visa, which required him to leave the U.S. by May 25, 2014. It is unclear what Shama’s legal status was between May 2014 and when his family said an order of removal was issued in 2018.
“The fact of the matter is those who are in this country illegally have a choice,” McLaughlin wrote. “They can use the CBP Home app and receive a free flight and a $1,000 check or they can be arrested, detained, and deported.”
The GoFundMe’s organizer, Dani Christian, linked to a TikTok with a message from Shama. It is unclear exactly where Shama is in the video, but he is seen in a beige shirt while others in the background walk in blue scrubs.
“Thank you so much for everything you guys are doing,” Shama said. “I am eternally grateful. I am not crying. I am strong, and I’m keeping this together. Thank you so much. I love you. I love you. I love you.”
Shama closed by making a heart with his hands, audibly choking up as he finished his message.
In the Spotlight designates ongoing topics of high interest that are driven by The News & Observer’s focus on accountability reporting.
This story was originally published October 17, 2025 at 2:02 PM.
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