Valentina Galvis Sues MVM Inc. and Sonesta Over Five-Day Hotel Detention
Valentina Galvis, an asylum-seeker from Colombia, filed a federal lawsuit on September 29 against Immigration and Customs Enforcement contractor MVM Inc. and several Sonesta-related companies after spending five days locked in a room at the Sonesta Chicago O’Hare Airport Rosemont with her then-seven-month-old infant son, a U.S. citizen (The Intercept). The complaint alleges false imprisonment, civil conspiracy, and physical and emotional harm resulting from the June 2025 detention, which followed an arrest by ICE at a Chicago immigration court (The Intercept, Hoodline).
Allegations of Confinement and Harms Suffered in the Hotel Room
The lawsuit details a strict lockdown inside the airport hotel room where Galvis and her infant had no way to communicate with the outside world and no indication of when they would be released (The Intercept). According to court filings, the infant received nutritionally inadequate food scraps after recently starting solid foods, while confinement-induced stress caused Galvis to experience a drop in breastmilk production (The Intercept). The baby suffered sleep disturbances and a worsening skin condition during the five-day ordeal, and because no laundry service was available, Galvis washed the infant’s clothing in the bathroom sink, leaving the child in diapers while the garments dried near the air conditioner (The Intercept). William G. McLean III, attorney for Galvis and her son, stated that the corporate defendants unlawfully imprisoned and permanently traumatized his clients over five terrifying days following an illegal arrest by the Department of Homeland Security (The Intercept).
Corporate Defendants and Federal Response to Hotel Detentions
The complaint names Sonesta International Hotels Corporation, affiliated property owners, and seven individual hotel and contractor executives and employees, including MVM employee JoAnna Granado, who transported the family upon their release (The Intercept). MVM did not respond to questions regarding the lawsuit, while Sonesta declined to comment beyond stating during the original 2025 investigation that it does not condone illegal behavior at its hotels (The Intercept). The federal government is not named as a defendant in the action (The Intercept). However, federal detention practices face broader scrutiny following an inspector general report showing ICE failed to manage its detention space contracts (Office of Inspector General). At a September 30 press conference, Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin defended facility conditions, stating that detention centers meet or exceed federal standards and that comfort is not a departmental priority (The Intercept).
Pending Asylum Claim and Ongoing Legal Demands
Galvis seeks more than $50,000 in compensatory damages alongside punitive damages and a jury trial, accusing the companies of detaining her and her child for profit (The Intercept). While a federal judge previously ordered that Galvis and her baby could not be removed from Illinois, leading to their release by MVM, Galvis’s asylum claim remains pending in immigration court, leaving her at risk of deportation (The Intercept, Hoodline). She currently receives therapy after an evaluation determined she suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder resulting from the confinement (The Intercept).
Questions Regarding the Ongoing Litigation
Has MVM Inc. or Sonesta filed a formal response in court?
The available court records and reporting do not establish whether the defendants have formally answered or been served with the lawsuit, and neither MVM nor Sonesta representatives have issued public comments on the litigation (The Intercept, Hoodline).
What specific financial contracts connect MVM to ICE family transport?
Since fiscal year 2020, MVM has received more than $1.3 billion in ICE contracts, primarily dedicated to transporting immigrant children and families across the United States (Injustice Watch).
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