"We didn't think this would happen to someone complying with the processes that were told to him," said longtime friend Nikhil Delahaye. "We said we could take this moment and panic or really step up to see how we could help him." Mbock has no criminal history, has worked various retail jobs, and has been able to live his life openly as a gay man. Family and friends fear that if Mbock is returned to his native country of Cameroon, he could be targeted because of his sexuality. Under Cameroonian law, sexual relationships between people of the same sex are illegal and can carry prison time.