The man who created the viral “Trump Burger” has been taken into custody by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, making him the second pro-Trump restaurateur facing deportation in recent weeks.
Iyad Muhammad Abuelhawa, 55, founder of the original Trump Burger restaurant in Bellville, Texas, was arrested by ICE agents on June 2.
His former business partner, Roland Beainy, was detained a month earlier. Both arrests were only disclosed this month, according to the Fayette County Record.
ICE officials told the paper that Abuelhawa previously served time in federal prison for health care fraud and drug misbranding. Authorities allege he has been living in the U.S. illegally for 16 years despite a deportation order issued in 2009.
“While in the U.S. illegally, Abuelhawa has repeatedly put the lives of innocent Americans in jeopardy,” an ICE spokesperson said. “In 2007, he was convicted of healthcare fraud and misbranding of a drug for dangerously injecting 1,600 Houston-area residents with fake flu shots. In 2000, he was convicted of assault, and in 2018 he was convicted of intimidation. As a result of the current administration’s focus on restoring integrity to our nation’s immigration laws, he was arrested by ICE on June 2 and will no longer be free to endanger anyone in the U.S. again.”
A Jordanian citizen, Abuelhawa was supposed to be deported after serving his prison term but managed to stay in the country. He is now being held at the Montgomery processing center in Conroe, Texas.
His attorneys told the Houston Chronicle that he suffers from diabetes and heart issues and has been denied insulin and blood sugar monitoring. The Department of Homeland Security, which oversees ICE, denied those claims.
“Any claim that detainees are not being provided with proper medical care is FALSE,” a DHS spokesperson told HuffPost. “This is the best health care many aliens have received in their entire lives. Meals are certified by dietitians. Ensuring the safety, security, and well-being of individuals in our custody is a top priority at ICE.”
After prison, Abuelhawa began using the Americanized name Eddie Hawa and rebranded his Bellville Café into “Trump Café” during Donald Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign. The viral success later inspired him to launch Trump Burger in 2020 with Beainy as his partner.
The Trump Burger menu included items like the Trump Tower Burger — a hefty one-pound stack of Aberdeen Angus beef patties, grilled onions, jalapenos, tomatoes, lettuce, cheese, onion rings, and a mix of barbecue and sriracha sauce.
There was also a satirical “Biden Burger,” described on the menu as a meager one-ounce patty with an “old tomato” and “our oldest buns,” listed at $50.99 but “not actually available because of cheating and inflation.”
The partners eventually opened several Houston-area locations before splitting in a dispute that led to a lawsuit over ownership rights. The case may now be irrelevant, as both men face deportation.
Beainy, a 28-year-old Lebanese national, was accused of overstaying a non-immigrant visitor visa in 2019, which required him to leave the U.S. by February 12, 2024. He also faced allegations of trying to secure legal status through a sham marriage.
At the time of his arrest, DHS officials stressed that enforcement applies “regardless of what restaurant you own or political beliefs you might have” — even if you are a supporter of the president.
Beainy was released on bond on June 13 while awaiting court proceedings.
