An O.C. couple’s sudden deportation sends shock waves: ‘They have never broken the law’
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- The Laguna Niguel couple’s sudden deportation stunned their three adult daughters, who are American citizens.
- Advocates say the case is part of a troubling trend: immigrants living in the country without legal authorization, who have no criminal history, being detained during routine check-ins and in some cases deported.
Nelson and Gladys Gonzalez lived in the United States illegally for decades, working hard and raising a family while regularly checking in with Immigration and Customs Enforcement as part of an agreement to remain in the country.
But when the Laguna Niguel couple showed up for a routine check-in on Feb. 21, they were detained and sent back to Colombia, according to the family’s GoFundMe page and a spokesperson for ICE.
The couple’s sudden deportation stunned their three adult daughters, who are American citizens.
“They have never broken the law, never missed an appointment and this sudden occurrence has left us in shock,” they wrote on the fundraising site. “This cruel and unjust situation has shattered our family emotionally and financially.“
The ICE spokesperson confirmed that the couple had been given a final order for removal, and that they had no criminal history.
Advocates say the couple’s case is part of a troubling trend: immigrants living in the country without legal authorization, who have no criminal history, being detained during routine check-ins and in some cases deported.
A Venezuelan official says Venezuela will once again accept repatriation flights from the United States carrying its deported nationals, after reaching an agreement
Living in the country illegally is a civil violation, not a criminal offense, unless someone has been deported and returns to the country without permission.
Angelica Salas, executive director of the Coalition for Human Immigrant Rights, said she knows of similar cases in Chicago, Texas and Florida, among other locations.
Immigration officials “need that optic, which is extremely cruel for the people being detained and deported,” Salas said. “The majority of people have not violated the law and even if they did it’s for low-level things that really doesn’t merit the punishment for the crime they’ve committed.”
NBC 4 reported last week that Esmerlyn de Jesus Peralta, 29, an asylum seeker from the Dominican Republic living in Santa Ana, was detained and is facing deportation after showing up to what he believed was a routine check-in with immigration officials.
“I was shocked because he has no criminal record, he had his valid work permit, his Social Security number, he has got a life here,” the man’s girlfriend, Ashely Wang, told the news station.
During his campaign and at his inauguration, President Trump said he would launch the largest mass deportation in U.S. history and that he would target “millions and millions of criminal aliens” who pose a threat to national security and public safety.
In the first 50 days of the administration, ICE made 32,809 arrests, of which nearly half — 14,111 — were convicted criminals and about a third — 9,980 — had pending criminal charges, according to a Homeland Security statement.
But the operations also led to the arrest of 8,718 immigrants with no criminal history, including the parents of a 10-year-old girl who is a U.S. citizen and was recovering from brain cancer.
Recent data obtained and reviewed by NBC 4 found that in the first two weeks of February, 41% of the 4,422 people detained by ICE were immigrants with no criminal history.
White House officials said that although enforcement operations are focused on apprehending criminals, people who have violated the country’s immigration laws are also being arrested.
The arrests raise questions about whether the Trump administration is shifting its focus and casting a wider net in an effort to meet President Trump’s political promise.
Most recently, the Miami Herald reported that Venezuelans who were deported to El Salvador had no criminal record. Those deported included a young man who had recently received refugee status.
The administration, which has repeatedly described migrants as violent criminals, has also been revamping its immigration enforcement system. It has enlisted the help of other federal agencies, deputized local law enforcement officers and boosted powers of immigration authorities by making it easier for them to deport people — including those who were given legal entry through two Biden-era programs.
Recently, the administration ended a contract to provide legal representation to nearly 26,000 migrant children, which could potentially lead to rapid deportations.
The administration also plans to launch a registry requiring immigrants in the country illegally, including children, to submit personal information and fingerprints, which could result in fines or misdemeanor charges.
When the Gonzalezes were detained in February, their three daughters — Stephanie, Jessica and Gabby — created the GoFundMe page to raise money for their parents’ legal costs and to help them rebuild their lives in Colombia. The trio raised about $62,000.
Stephanie Gonzalez, 27, who is listed as the contact for the fundraiser, could not be reached for comment.
The Trump administration ends federal contract that provides legal representation to nearly 26,000 migrant children who entered the U.S. alone, leaving them vulnerable to rapid deportation.
According to a statement from ICE, the married couple entered the country illegally in November 1989 near San Ysidro, Calif. The agency did not say under what program the couple were allowed to stay.
The couple’s trek to the U.S., however, happened at a time when Colombia was racked by armed conflict, political and drug violence that resulted in the deaths of many Colombians, including a popular presidential candidate who was assassinated.
Immigration officials said Nelson Gonzalez, 59, applied for asylum in 1992 but that his case was closed in June 1998, when he failed to attend an interview. In the summer of 1998, an immigration judge also found that Gladys Gonzalez, 55, had no legal basis to stay.
The pair appeared before an immigration judge in March 2000 and agreed to leave the country but instead they sought an appeal for each of their cases. ICE officials did not say if they were allowed to stay while they waited for their appeals to be heard.
That process finally ended in 2021, and on Feb. 21 they were detained while a final order of removal was being processed, according to ICE. Several weeks later, they were put on a plane back to their native country.
The couple’s daughters told the Orange County Register, which was first to report the story, that their parents had been deported.
Stephanie Gonzalez said her parents were relieved to be free but were still processing the ordeal.
At least two of the sisters said they plan to travel to Colombia to see their parents soon, while a third sister plans to travel next month.
