McALLEN, Texas (Border Report) — A San Antonio pastor tells Border Report that several members of her Mennonite congregation face deportation after being arrested by U.S. Immigration Customs Enforcement agents at scheduled government check-ins.
Since Donald Trump took office in January, Pastor Dianne Garcia says 12 members of her church, Iglesia Cristiana Roca de Refugio, have been arrested by ICE and seven have been deported.
“ICE has been very active here in San Antonio. We’ve had a number of members of our congregation detained in various circumstances. Right now there are five members of our congregation currently in detention,” Garcia told Border Report. “In the last three weeks, we’ve had two single mothers detained with their children, one with her 3-year-old toddler and one with her three younger children.”
Garcia says the arrests started six weeks ago. And all were arrested when they went for their mandatory ICE check-in meetings.
“The majority have been arrested when they’ve gone to the ICE office to present themselves for their regularly scheduled check-in,” Garcia says.
The meetings occur about every six months and are a requirement of migrants seeking asylum and who are in immigration proceedings to ensure U.S. officials know of their whereabouts.
“Unfortunately, they’re targeting those people who are trying to follow the law and do the right thing and present themselves, and they’re the ones that are mostly being detained. Almost all of the members of my community have been detained there,” Garcia says.
Border Report asked Department of Homeland Security officials if ICE agents are making arrests at check-in meetings. A DHS spokesperson responded: “Apprehensions at U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services offices may occur if individuals are identified as having outstanding warrants; being subject to court-issued removal orders; or having committed fraud, crimes, or other violations of immigration law while in the United States. These actions are typically carried out by law enforcement partners, such as Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).”
“Apprehensions at U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services offices may occur if individuals are identified as having outstanding warrants; being subject to court-issued removal orders; or having committed fraud, crimes, or other violations of immigration law.”
DHS spokesperson
Iglesia Cristiana Roca de Refugio church was founded in April 2023 specifically to help immigrants living in the south side of San Antonio. All of their services are held in Spanish.
“We actually started the church before all of this happened years ago with the idea to be a place of home and belonging for people who were far from their home and are often told they don’t belong here,” said Garcia, 46, is a second-generation immigrant.
She says it’s hard to advise congregants on doing what is right when she feels the government is doing wrong.
“It’s really hard to talk to people about having hope when it feels so hopeless and it feels like you could do everything right and still be treated terribly and be detained and separated from your family or deported. It’s really hard to talk to people about the fact that anyone could be detained at any time, and it doesn’t matter if you don’t have a criminal background, that actually what they’re saying is not what they’re doing, that they are targeting anyone they can, I assume, just to have their numbers at a certain level,” Garcia said.
The Trump administration says it wants to remove all immigrants with criminal backgrounds from the United States.
But the latest data shows that nearly three quarters of those currently detained, as of Nov. 30, have no criminal convictions, according to Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse (TRAC) of Syracuse University.
Garcia says one of the single mothers recently arrested is from Venezuela and in her mid 30s and was a cook in a local restaurant. “She had a work permit and driver’s license and she’s also just a model person. She’s an incredible member of our community and completely beloved by everybody.”
Garcia is not releasing the names of those arrested for fear of retribution against their families.
The women and others who have been arrested are being held at the Karnes County Immigration Processing southeast of San Antonio, and the Dilley Immigration Processing Center, in Dilley, Texas.
She says the facilities are crowded with mothers and children waiting in line for medical care, toiletries, food and even to get their children into daily classes.
She says she has visited congregants at both facilities, including last week.
She says her community is tight-knit, and families affiliated with her members are scared to leave their homes and most know someone who has been arrested and detained by ICE.
“I know of maybe 40 people in detention and 40 families who are trying to work through what they’re going to do now that that member of their family has been detained,” Garcia said. “They really want to be here and want to be a part of our community and they really want to help us build a stronger community and a better world.”
Sandra Sanchez can be reached at SSanchez@BorderReport.com.