A surfer was taken into ICE custody after accidentally wandering into a US military base in Southern California while looking to enjoy his favorite pastime.

Hagop Chirinian - originally from Lebanon - was arrested on August 24 when he crossed about 100 yards into Camp Pendleton, according to KBPS.

He said he had arrived at the beach before sunrise with friends when the early-morning surfing trip turned his life upside down.

Chirinian claimed ICE had previously tried to deport him in 2005 after he lost his legal permanent residency following a felony drug conviction.

However, he was allowed to stay and work in the US after Lebanese authorities supposedly could not come up with his passport or birth certificate.

Chirinian was placed in a supervision program and allegedly complied with its conditions, but he said that made no difference to the arresting officers.

Four months later, he remains in custody at the Otay Mesa Detention Center in San Diego.

'ICE did not talk to me for the first two months,' Chirinian told KBPS. 'Nobody came and said a word to me.'

Hagop Chirinian, from Lebanon, was arrested on August 24 after wandering about 100 yards into Camp Pendleton while on an early morning surf trip

His girlfriend, Tambra Sanders-Kirk, said that Chirinian was 'getting really depressed' as he waited for his future to be resolved

Chirinian recalled how a planned surfing expedition in Oceanside went awry after he and his friends set up a tent near the shore.

'The military police pulled up in their Jeep with their lights on and told us we are on a military base,' he said.

The group was issued trespassing tickets - and asked if they were American citizens.

Chirinian informed the officers that he was not, which he claimed prompted them to call ICE.

The Lebanese national arrived in the US more than 50 years ago and was a legal permanent resident until 2005.

A drug conviction nearly got him deported then, but the effort was sidelined when his native government could not provide travel documents.

Chirinian allegedly explained that he was already enrolled in a supervision program with ICE that included two decades of regular check-ins and regularly updated personal information.

Chirinian said ICE tried to deport him in 2005 when he lost his legal permanent residency after a felony drug conviction (File photo of ICE agents)

Chirinian remains in custody at the Otay Mesa Detention Center in San Diego roughly four months after his arrest

However, he claimed that was not enough for an ICE agent on the scene.