The Houston-area restaurant chain Trump Burger is mired in lawsuits, evictions, and now immigration controversy surrounding one of its operators, Roland Beainy, whom federal officials say overstayed his visa and is facing deportation proceedings.
Trump Burger, a politically themed restaurant chain that began in Bellville, Texas, has expanded in recent years with locations in Kemah, Flatonia, and Houston.
Founded in 2016 by Eddie and Sue Hawa—formerly known as Iyad Abuelhawa and Suad Hamadeh before Americanizing their names—the business originally operated as Trump Café before rebranding. Around 2020, Roland Beainy became involved in running the company.
Now, according to court filings, Beainy, Abuelhawa, and others are entangled in a series of legal disputes over the operations of multiple Trump Burger locations. Allegations include failure to pay rent, breach of contract, an untransferred alcohol license, eviction, a contested lease addendum, and commandeering of business operations.
One particularly public dispute involves the Kemah location, where landlord Archie Patterson claims he assumed control of the site and rebranded it as MAGA Burger USA following an eviction last month. Patterson alleges he had to cover late rent for the business and says Beainy has since been in immigration custody.
Multiple organizations sought clarification from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement about Beainy’s status. Beainy has claimed he was born in Boston, and a Fox Business article published in 2022 described him as “a second-generation Lebanese American.” However, ICE disputes those claims.
In a statement, the agency wrote:
Despite false claims to the contrary, Roland Mehrez Beainy does not have any immigration benefits that prevented his arrest or removal from the United States. Beainy is a 28-year-old illegal alien from Lebanon who entered the United States in 2019 as a non-immigrant visitor, but he failed to depart by Feb. 12, 2024, as required under the terms of his admission. ICE officers arrested him on May 16, 2025, and he was placed into immigration proceedings. On June 13, an immigration judge granted his request for bond while he undergoes his proceedings.
A Department of Homeland Security spokesman echoed those statements to Newsweek, adding: “The Department of Homeland Security has zero tolerance for immigration fraud, and this individual’s claims are baseless. USCIS revoked the petition after evidence, including admissions from the petitioner’s own family, exposed his marriage as a sham designed to game the system. This person has no Green Card, a history of illegal marriages, and an assault charge. DHS is actively pursuing all legal avenues to address this flagrant abuse of our immigration laws.”
Beainy disputes much of what has been said, telling reporters, “The lawyers are suggesting we shouldn’t comment. A lot of the stuff is fake, though, but it is what it is.”
An immigration court hearing for Beainy is scheduled for November 18.
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