Former NFL player Daniel Adongo has spent ‘several months’ behind bars at one of the most notorious ICE detention centers in America.
The Kenyan-born linebacker and ex-rugby player, has been jailed by Donald Trump’s U.S. Immigration & Customs Enforcement officers at Miami Correctional Facility in Indiana.
Dubbed the ‘Speedway Slammer’ by Trump’s administration, it is one of the largest detention centers in the Midwest and houses up to 1,000 detainees at a time.
Adongo, who arrived in America 13 years ago after being handed an NFL opportunity with the Colts, reportedly has just a Class A misdemeanor on his criminal record from six years ago.
Dubbed the ‘Kenyan Hercules’, Adongo has a long history of mental health problems, with some health professionals believing he has CTE. He has also been arrested several times since he left the NFL in 2015, according to The Indianapolis Star,
Adongo first signed with the Colts in 2013 at the age of 23. He had only ever seen highlights of NFL games before but, at 6ft 5ins and 250lbs, he had the stature to thrive.
Former NFL star Daniel Adongo has spent ‘several months’ at a notorious ICE detention center
Adongo played five games for the Colts across three seasons after signing with them in 2013
After two appearances for the Colts in his first season, Adongo spent the 2014 campaign on injured reserve with a bicep injury. He was activated from their practice squad in 2015 and played a further three games for the Colts.
But, in December 2015, the Indianapolis Star reported that police went to Adongo’s home to check on the condition of a woman living there who had texted a friend indicating she was in need of help.
When police arrived, according to their report, the woman said she did not want medical assistance and she could not explain why she sent the text. Adongo was not at the residence when police arrived.
Adongo was ruled out of the Colts’ game that week and was then waived by the team a week later. He wasn’t seen in the NFL again.
It was also the second occasion police were called to Adongo’s home that season but no charges were filed after either call. The NFL suspended him in 2016 after an investigation.
Around 12 months later, Adongo was arrested in Indianapolis for threatening his Uber driver with a hatchet. He was later charged with intimidation and criminal mischief.
In 2017, Marion Superior Court Judge Lisa Borges demanded Adongo be given a psychiatric examination to see if he was fit for trial. He was later deemed incompetent and sent to a psychiatric facility.
Adongo showed promise as a rugby player in South Africa, leading to a call from the Colts
He became the first Kenyan to play in the NFL but failed to become a started in Indianapolis
After his NFL exit, Adongo had several brushes with the law and struggled with mental health
After eventually being cleared to stand trial, Adongo was arrested again in 2019 when he failed to attend a court hearing.
Sheriffs asked he be moved to the Indiana Department of Correction because he had been diagnosed with schizophrenia and was refusing to medicate and bathe and needed ‘competency restoration.’
When he was finally cleared to stand trial again, Adongo pleaded guilty to criminal mischief, a Class A misdemeanor, and was sentenced to a year in jail. He was ordered to serve only six months.
Adongo faced more legal troubles in the following years and was charged with battery, disorderly conduct and intimidation. All of those charges were eventually dismissed.
Last summer, he was accused of threatening a police officer outside a Kroger Store in Mishawaka. Adongo’s lawyer blamed his mental illness and cited a 2020 report in which he was described as ‘acutely psychotic’ with traumatic brain injury.
A mental health social worker for the St. Joseph County Police Department Crisis Services Unit claimed Adongo was suffering from an ‘undisclosed mental illness which is highly speculated to be Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE)’.
The neurodegenerative brain disease, which is caused by repeated blows to the head, has been found in 345 of 376 deceased NFL players. It can only be diagnosed posthumously.
Adongo was booked on July 27, 2025 at St. Joseph County Jail before being moved into ICE custody later on.
He was first at Clay County Jail, an ICE detention center just outside of Terre Haute, first before being moved again to the Miami Correctional Facility. The charges were dismissed later in 2025.
The Daily Mail has contacted the ICE Office of Public Affairs and Indianapolis Colts for comment.
