An American woman who traveled to Pakistan to marry her teenage pen pal is on her way back to America after she overstayed her welcome.
Onijah Robinson, 33, from New York, was admitted to a psychiatric ward for a mental evaluation after traveling to Pakistan in October to meet 19-year-old Pakistani national, Nidal Ahmed Memon.
Robinson hoped Memon would propose to her after communicating with him for months.
However, Memon rejected Robinson and told her that his family would never approve their marriage. Robinson was left stranded in Karachi after her tourist visa expired.
She reportedly camped outside Memon’s apartment in Karachi for nearly 30 hours. But the entire family vacated the house in the middle of the night.
Robinson refused to leave the country until the government paid her $5,000 a week in American dollars. She told reporters she needed around $100,000 USD “to help rebuild Karachi.”
“I want 20K up front, 5K-10K to stay here every week, and I want those demands from the government right away”, she said in videos on TikTok.
Her story generated headlines in Pakistan and around the world.
Robinson’s family pleaded with her to get on a plane and come home, but she ignored their requests.
The police and social services encouraged Robinson to move to a women’s shelter before being admitted to a psychiatric ward at Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre.
According to News18, Robinson is on a plane headed back home to New York following her discharge from the mental hospital.
She reportedly received financial assistance from the Pakistani government.
Robinson’s son, Jeremiah Andrew Robinson, confirmed his mother has mental health problems that were not adequately addressed in America.
“My mother traveled to Pakistan to meet a man and his family. She was supposed to return within two weeks, but she never came back,” Jeremiah said.
He explained that he and his sibling made multiple attempts to convince their mother to return home, even purchasing a plane ticket for her, but she refused.
Robinson was previously arrested on a trespassing charge in South Carolina, according to online jail records.
The failed mental health system in America is on full display for the world to see.
Americans lack mental health support and resources. Hundreds of mental health hospitals and clinics were closed due to lack of government funding. Many Americans are mentally ill, but the majority of those in need of help go untreated.
American actress Countess Vaughn mocked Robinson in a TikTok video.
