When he was just 15 years old and still a child, a man came to the United States from Guatemala. That was 25 years ago. He’s now 40 years old, and he has recently been arrested over his immigration status. He attempted to post bail and was denied.
There are a few interesting things about this case, starting with the fact that it took 25 years to arrest him and that he was a child when entered the United States. On top of that, he has become something of an activist over the years. He recently held a meeting to try to get both sides to open up communication with each other, and he invited ICE agents to the meeting.
Shortly after extending that invitation, they decided to take him into custody.
The man has been here so long that he has a large family in the United States. This family includes five children of his own, and he now even has a pair of young grandchildren.
Meanwhile, ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) has denied that any personnel actually went to his forum after he invited him. They said no one was there in an official or an unofficial capacity. They claimed that this showed that they weren’t running covert operations to take him in.
Instead, they said that they got an anonymous tip and acted on that. They would give no more information, just saying “We’re not gonna be able to comment any further on the anonymous tip,” in an interview.
This case shows just how complex immigration issues have become. Make sure you know all of your legal rights.