The inventor of the “Trump Burger” has been detained by the very administration he idolizes, making him the second MAGA-branded restaurateur to land in ICE custody this summer.
Iyad Abuelhawa, 55, was detained by ICE agents on June 2, two months before his one-time business partner, Roland Beainy, 28, went viral for being taken into custody by ICE as he ran Trump Burger locations in Texas.
Abuelhawa, who previously served time in federal prison, is accused of being in the U.S. illegally for more than a decade. He was issued a deportation order on Sept. 15, 2009, reported the Fayette County Record, citing an ICE spokesperson.
ICE has vowed never to let Abuelhawa walk free in the U.S. again.
“While in the U.S. illegally, Abuelhawa has repeatedly put the lives of innocent Americans in jeopardy,” an ICE spokesperson told the Record. “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.”
Beainy, who is Lebanese, is accused of overstaying a “non-immigrant visa” in 2024 and is accused of attempting to have a “sham” marriage, DHS told the Daily Beast this month. He entered the U.S. legally in 2019.
The detainment of Abuelhawa flew under the radar earlier this summer, but was resurfaced by a Houston Chronicle report this month. His lawyers later told the paper that he is in such poor health, he fears he will die in ICE custody.
Abuelhawa, who was born in Jerusalem and also goes by the name Eddie Hawa, was a trailblazer in the MAGA-branded restaurant scene. He rebranded his restaurant in the Houston exurb of Bellville, Texas, into “Trump Cafe” in October 2016—a month before his idol had even defeated Hillary Clinton in the presidential election.
The eatery, among the first of its kind, if not the first, went viral. Reviews for the cafe, which switched from offering French cuisine to serving a “Trump Burger,” show that many customers traveled from far and wide to visit. Abuelhawa spoke to local news stations frequently, telling one that his dream was for Trump to visit. However, the president did not have much time to make it there. The cafe closed its doors in November 2017, promising to remodel and reopen, but it never did.
Abuelhawa opened another MAGA-branded eatery, Trump Burger, in 2020. He ran the business with a new partner, Beainy, who is half his age. The establishment was such a success that other locations were opened across the Houston area, often to “much fanfare,” writes the local paper.
What flew under the surface was its founders’ checkered past.
Abuelhawa was arrested in 2005 for trying to defraud Medicare by administering bogus flu vaccines—with syringes filled with sterilized water—to senior citizens and 1,100 Exxon Mobil employees at a health fair. He pleaded guilty to a charge of healthcare fraud and was sentenced to four years in prison.
While in lock-up, the Chronicle reports that Abuelhawa was asked to participate in a murder-for-hire plot worth $250,000 to kill an FBI agent and others. He informed guards about the plot and worked with federal investigators to bust his fellow inmate, according to the paper.
Now, Abuelhawa’s attorneys tell the Chronicle that he is suffering from severe diabetes and heart issues while in ICE custody at a detention center north of Houston. He has allegedly been denied insulin or blood sugar monitoring, but the Department of Homeland Security disputes that claim.
“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 dieticians.” Ensuring the safety, security, and well-being of individuals in our custody is a top priority at ICE.”
The post ICE Detains ANOTHER Owner of Viral ‘Trump Burger’ Restaurant appeared first on The Daily Beast.
