Cliona 'scared' after US detention

THE sister of Irishwoman Cliona Ward, who was detained by border agents after returning to the US despite living there for decades, says she is "depressed and scared" as she could be facing months in prison.

- BY CONOR HENEGHAN

Cliona was initially stopped in Seattle last month after attempting to return to the US following a trip to Ireland with her step-mother so they could be with her father, who is currently battling dementia.

Living in Santa Cruz for 30 years, the 54-year-old Irish woman is a permanent legal resident in the US, with a valid green card and had reportedly emigrated to the States when she was just 12.

Cliona was kept at the airport for a number of days owing to an allegedly expunged criminal conviction from two decades ago.