A member of the fighting game community has found himself ensnared in the net of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), according to his teammates and friends at the organization he represents, The Hiero Group (THG).
Ludovic Mbock, who resides in Maryland, was picked up by ICE agents recently and is currently in custody, according to multiple social media posts on X Thursday. Details on his apprehension were not revealed including the location and time/date of his pickup, his immigration status, or any reason why ICE might pick him up in the first place.
According to a post on Bluesky from writer Sam Machkovech, Mbock emigrated to the U.S. from Cameroon, and graduated from a Maryland high school in 2006. It is unclear how he came into the United States and what his current status is. The Esports Advocate could not independently verify his immigration status, as of this writing. On LinkedIn Mbock is listed as a game advisor for THG and “logistics associate” at Sam’s Club. On his X account Mbock describes himself as a lover of the Street Fighter character Chun Li, and enjoys competing in King of Fighters, Street Fighter 6 and TEKKEN 8.
His last public post on X was Feb. 13, where he retweeted a THG tweet about heading to EXP Pittsburgh.
The social media posts in support of Mbock are to raise awareness of his detention and to raise money for a legal defense fund on GoFundMe. The fund has already greatly surpassed its initial funding goal. It sits at more than $53,000 USD, as of this writing, with a new funding goal of $90,000.
Ludovic from THG was detained by ICE, and right now he needs us. He’s more than a teammate — he’s family.
We’ve set up a support link to help with legal fees and support during this time. If you can donate, please do. If not, please share.https://t.co/TCsTnq6ihy #FreeLudovic
— THG|Say-Co (@Sayco_DMV) February 18, 2026
Our brother Ludovic from THG was detained by ICE, and right now he needs us.
If you’ve ever gamed with him or know the kind of loyal, solid person he is, then you understand why this hits hard.
There’s a support link set up to help with legal fees and to make sure he has the…
— 👹 The Hiero Group (@TheHieroGroup) February 18, 2026
An update to the GoFundMe claims that Mbock is being held in a Baltimore ICE facility, and that ICE was attempting to move him. From the update:
An additional update on Feb. 19, at 10 p.m. EST, claims that Mbock was moved from Baltimore to a detention center in Louisiana.
The Esports Advocate has reached out to ICE for further details on Mbock’s detention, current location, and status on his release. We will update this story when we have more information.
Editor’s note: This story was updated on Feb. 20 at 11:56 a.m. EST to add additional information.