LOGAN, Utah — Ayoola Ajayi was banned from the Utah State University campus in 2012 after an arrest for possession of stolen property and a series of conflicting and misleading statements about his housing situation and immigration status.
Documents secured under a public records request show that Ajayi was banned August 2 of 2012 in a letter sent by school officials.
“It has come to my attention that you are currently out of status with the United States of America Immigration Services and are in the U.S. illegally,” the letter begins. “Due to your current status and also because of the recent charges filed by Utah State University Police your status has become more complicated.”
While Ajayi was arrested for possession of stolen property by USU Police, formal charges in that case do not appear in a search of public records.
The letter went on to say that Ajayi had no reason to be on campus after the expiration of his relationship with the USU International Students and Scholars, and that if he returned to campus for any reason he would need to call ahead and be escorted by police during his visit.
Records from the campus police department state they first ran into Ajayi when he was sleeping on a couch on campus.
Police wrote that he lied about his status at the school and the existence of girlfriend who lived on campus, and they suspected he was homeless and using the facilities on the USU campus.
Investigators ultimately learned his student visa was expired and wrote that if he should be arrested on campus again, ICE should be notified.
Ajayi was later found in possession of an iPad that was stolen from a professor’s classroom. Police said Ajayi claimed his mother had sent it to him and he didn’t even know how to use it, but police said Ajayi had been affiliated with a gaming team and was well versed on such electronics.
In several encounters with police, officers said Ajayi would give conflicting or nonsensical statements about where he lived, what his future plans were, and his status with immigration authorities.
A spokesman for USU previously confirmed to Fox 13 that Ajayi attended the school in 2009 and 2010 but left in the spring of 2011. He returned a final time in 2015 and left in fall 2016.
Ajayi is currently being held in jail without bail, and formal charges are expected to be filed against him next week.
