Versión Español
EspañolOn Wednesday, Marco Coello, a pro-democracy activist from Venezuela in his early twenties, was arrested in the United States by the immigration authorities while at an interview where he was making an asylum request. He was freed on Thursday after Republican Senator Marco Rubio publicly expressed his interest in this case.
According to sources in Rubio‘s office, the senator, who is of Cuban descent, made a major effort to get Coello released, contacting officials at both the Department of Homeland Security and the White House.
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Also on Wednesday, Rubio personally contacted White House Chief of Staff, Reince Priebus, regarding the young Venezuelan’s case, said one of the senator’s spokesmen.
According to the spokesman, before Rubio contacted the White House, the Trump administration was unaware of the case. The White House, he added, was very effective in collaborating to solve the problem.
Coello was released from the Krome Detention Center in Miami, Florida shortly after noon on Thursday, April 27. The young Venezuelan had been arrested the day before but the authorities involved did not provide reasons for the arrest according to his attorney, Elizabeth Blandon.
Blandon added that Coello’s release after a day of detention proved that he had been detained for no specific reason. US officials, however, explained that Coello had violated US law because he was guilty of not leaving the United States before his visa expired.
“Consequently, he violated the terms of his nonimmigrant status in the United States. And as Secretary (of National Security John) Kelly has stated, ICE will no longer exonerate classes or categories of expelled aliens from potential legal actions,” said ICE spokesman Nestor Yglesias.
Source: El Nuevo Herald
