Los Angeles Resident Seeks Answers After Wife’s Unexpected Detainment at Green Card Appointment

Man Pleads for Help as Wife Faces Deportation After Green Card Hearing

Pasadena Man’s Plea for Wife Detained in Los Angeles

A Pasadena resident is calling for assistance after his wife was detained by federal agents at the conclusion of a scheduled green card hearing in downtown Los Angeles. Tucker May reports that his wife, Barbara Gomes Marques, 38, was advancing toward U.S. citizenship when they attended a hearing at the Edward R. Roybal Federal Building earlier this month.

Mysterious Arrest During Immigration Process

According to May, after Marques’s hearing, she was asked to accompany an official down a hallway under the pretense of copying her passport. Instead, this led to her detention by U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents. “Leaving without her that night was incredibly difficult,” May expressed. “She was excited about progressing toward citizenship and took great care in her appearance for the occasion.”

Questions Surrounding the Detention

Marques, a documentary filmmaker with no criminal record, originally came to the U.S. on a tourist visa seven years ago. May claims she was unnecessarily shackled and humiliated by ICE agents, with one allegedly taking a selfie during the arrest. CBS News Los Angeles has reached out to ICE and DHS for more details, as the couple is claiming ignorance of an alleged missed court date in 2019.

Legal Battle to Halt Deportation

Immigration attorney Marcelo Gondim, representing Marques, explained that she was initially held at the Adelanto ICE Facility before being moved to Arizona, and is slated for further transfer to Louisiana. Gondim suggests these relocations are intended to isolate Marques from her legal team and family. “Given her marriage to a U.S. citizen, she has a clear path to permanent residency,” Gondim stated.

Efforts to Stop Relocation and Deportation

An emergency request for a temporary restraining order has been filed to prevent further transfers or deportation. As they await a judge’s decision, May is appealing for help beyond his own resources. “I’m just trying to bring my wife back home,” he said. “If such incidents can occur to us, they could happen to anyone of us.”