Amos Yee faces deportation from US after parole from child sex offences sentence

Amos Yee, a Singaporean national convicted in the United States for child pornography and sexual grooming, was released on parole from the Danville Correctional Center in Illinois on 20 November 2025. He now faces likely deportation proceedings, with US immigration authorities initiating steps that could revoke his asylum status.

According to a notification issued by the Victim Information and Notification Everyday (VINE) system, Yee, 27, was released from custody at 7.14am Illinois time (9.14pm Singapore time).

 This marks his second parole attempt, following an earlier release in October 2023, which ended with his re-incarceration a month later for violating parole terms.

Yee had been serving a six-year sentence following his December 2021 conviction on charges of possessing child pornography and grooming a minor.

He pleaded guilty to two counts, with another 16 charges dropped under a plea agreement. The offences occurred in 2019 when he was 20, involving repeated solicitations for nude images and sexually explicit communication with a 14-year-old girl. The prosecution detailed that Yee had used WhatsApp to engage in roleplay and distribute illicit images online.

He was initially arrested in October 2020 by US marshals at his residence in Chicago’s Norwood Park East neighbourhood. His sentence was backdated to the time of arrest, and he was expected to remain incarcerated until October 2026, prior to parole eligibility.

In a blog post maintained by Yee’s supporters, it was noted that his release had previously been delayed due to difficulties securing a halfway house that complied with parole requirements, including distance from children. Yee is registered as a sex offender in Illinois and faces parole restrictions such as internet use bans and exclusion from child-accessible areas without official approval.

While parole was reinstated on 20 November, Yee’s legal circumstances remain uncertain.

A post dated 6 October on his supporters’ blog stated that he had been served with immigration papers from US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). This indicates that the Department of Homeland Security may proceed with revoking his asylum status, which was controversially granted in March 2017 despite opposition from US authorities.

Yee originally entered the US in December 2016 and claimed political persecution in Singapore. His asylum bid was successful after an immigration judge accepted that he had been targeted for his political views, referencing his earlier convictions in Singapore for hate speech.

Before relocating to the US, Yee had faced legal action in Singapore for publishing offensive material. In 2015, he was sentenced to four weeks’ jail for wounding the religious feelings of Christians and publishing an obscene image of former prime minister Lee Kuan Yew.

The following year, he received a six-week sentence and a S$2,000 fine for making derogatory remarks about Christianity and Islam.

Now, with his asylum status under review and deportation proceedings underway, Yee may soon face legal consequences in Singapore. The Ministry of Defence (MinDef) has confirmed that Yee will be charged under the Enlistment Act should he return to the country.

A spokesperson from MinDef told local media that Yee failed to attend his pre-enlistment medical screening and remained outside Singapore without a valid exit permit. Under the Enlistment Act, such offences can result in a fine of up to S$10,000, imprisonment for up to three years, or both.

As of now, the Illinois Department of Corrections has not determined Yee’s discharge date from parole. His legal status will likely depend on further actions taken by ICE and the US immigration courts.