Kristi Noem Accused of Lying About DHS Deportation of a Cannibal Who 'Ate His Own Arm' During 2025 Flight

Kristi Noem is accused of lying to the publicafter federal officials said a dramatic story she shared about a cannibal immigrant on a deportation flight was completely fabricated.

The claim, which Noem repeated publicly in 2025 while defending the Trump administration's immigration crackdown, described a detainee who allegedly began eating his own arm during a deportation flight.

However, according to several federal law enforcement officials who spoke to reporters, there is no record that the incident ever occurred.

Noem first shared the story in July 2025 while appearing alongsideDonald Trumpat a press event promoting the administration's immigration enforcement policies. Speaking about what she described as dangerous individuals entering the country, Noem told reporters federal officers had detained a man she described as a 'cannibal.'

Kristi Noem told americans about a cannibal, ICE had detained who began eating himself during a deportation flight — a story that was completely made uppic.twitter.com/3Pv5jmo7Np

According to her account, the man was placed on a deportation flight organised by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

While restrained on the plane, she said, the detainee allegedly began eating his own arm, forcing agents to remove him from the aircraft and seek medical help before completing the deportation. 'These are the kind of deranged individuals that are on our streets,' Noem said at the time.

The claim resurfaced days later during an interview onJesse Watters Primetime, where Noem repeated the story in greater detail. She told host Jesse Watters that a federal marshal described the detainee as someone who had eaten other people before.

'He said he was literally eating his own arms,' Noem said during the interview, adding that the detainee was eventually removed from the aircraft for medical attention before being deported.

The story circulated widely online and was cited by supporters of tougher immigration policies as an example of what they described as threats entering the United States.

Source: International Business Times UK