A US Army sergeant's wife could face deportation after being detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) this month.
CBS News reported that Deisy Rivera Ortega was seized April 14 while attending an appointment at an El Paso Immigration office. Ortega is the wife of active duty US Army sergeant Jose Serrano. The 51-year-old has served for 27 years, including in Afghanistan.
Serrano told CBS News, "I don't really understand why, because she followed the rules of immigration by the T since day one."
According to Serrano, his wife had an active work permit when she was detained by ICE.
"I love the Army. (The) Army helped me out for almost 28 years. It's not the Army, sir. It's ICE. ICE is out of control right now, sir, taking away rights, as soldiers, that we have," Serrano added.
Ortega had been granted legal protection in 2019, preventing her deportation to El Salvador. However, ICE told the network that she had entered the US illegally a decade ago.
This is not the first time that a soldier's spouse has been detained by ICE while attempting to deal with their immigration status.
Earlier this month The New York Times reported that a woman named Annie Ramos was detained by ICE. Ramos was set to marry US Army staff sergeant Matthew Blank.
