World’s most popular TikTok star Khaby Lame leaves the U.S. after being detained by ICE

Khaby Lame, TikTok star, detained in U.S. for visa overstay, voluntarily leaves amid immigration crackdown.

Khaby Lame, the world’s most popular TikTok personality with millions of followers, has left the U.S. after being detained by immigration agents in Las Vegas for allegedly overstaying his visa.

The Senegalese-Italian influencer, whose legal name is Seringe Khabane Lame, was detained Friday (June 6, 2025) at Harry Reid International Airport but was allowed to leave the country without a deportation order, a spokesperson for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement confirmed in a statement.

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Mr Lame arrived in the U.S. on April 30 and “overstayed the terms of his visa,” the ICE spokesperson said. The Associated Press sent a message seeking comment Tuesday (June 10, 2025) to the email address listed on Mr Lame’s Instagram account. He has not publicly commented on his detainment.

His detainment and voluntary departure from the U.S. comes amid President Donald Trump’s escalating crackdown on immigration, including raids in Los Angeles that sparked days of protests against ICE, as the president tests the bounds of his executive authority.

A voluntary departure — which was granted to Mr Lame — allows those facing removal from the U.S. to avoid a deportation order on their immigration record, which could prevent them from being allowed back into the U.S. for up to a decade.

The 25-year-old rose to international fame during the pandemic without ever saying a word in his videos, which would show him reacting to absurdly complicated “life hacks.” He has over 162 million followers on TikTok alone.