NKY mother detained by ICE reunited with family

BURLINGTON, Ky. (WKRC) - A mother from Florence is back with her family after being detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) last week.

Riccy Enriquez Perdomo was detained in Louisville last Thursday after trying to post bond for someone else being held by ICE.

Agents said her DACA status expired, though Enriquez Perdomo says she renewed it earlier this year. DACA stands for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals. It protects undocumented immigrants who came to the U.S. as children.

Enriquez Perdomo, who has two young children, was relocated several times while in custody. It looked like she was on the fast track to deportation.

"She's already got travel documents. They were going to deport her next week. It's not like this was something that might happen; this was going to happen," says Robert Cote, her brother-in-law.

Everything changed Thursday when Enriquez Perdomo learned she was being released.

ICE officials said in a statement, "It was revealed that she is currently a DACA recipient and is being released from ICE custody."

Friends and family rushed to the Boone County jail where she was to be released. She arrived and was reunited with her family around 7:30 p.m. Thursday evening.

When asked about her time in custody, Enriquez Perdomo says it was exhausting. "I couldn't eat, I couldn't drink water because I was on the bus all the time. My body was hurting, I was so worried about my kids, my family."

She's confused but thankful. She says she'll continue to help fellow immigrants and she won't live in fear. "I'm not afraid because I know that God is with me and that's what he wants. He said love our neighbors. That's what I'm trying to do."

Enriquez Perdomo says immigration officials took all of her documentation, her driver’s license, social security card and work permit. She was given an October court date but she's not sure yet why.

Here is the ICE response in full:

On Aug. 17, 2017, Riccy Mabel Enriquez-Perdomo, 22, from Honduras, was arrested by officers with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in Louisville, Kentucky. After additional investigation, however, it was revealed that she is currently a DACA recipient and is being released from ICE custody.

On Aug. 17, 2017, Enriquez-Perdomo attempted to post a bond for an individual being held in ICE custody. Upon questioning by ICE officers, Enriquez-Perdomo inaccurately stated that she was a lawful permanent resident (LPR). ICE officers researched her immigration status in Department of Homeland Security (DHS) databases and determined that she was not an LPR. DHS databases indicated that she had been a recipient of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA). However, during their review of her computer file, they saw that her DACA status expired on March 19, 2017. Only after further investigation was it determined that her DACA status had been renewed on Jan. 31, 2017. (Enriquez-Perdomo’s initial application for DACA was approved on March 13, 2013, with an expiration of March 12, 2015.)

With this additional information, Enriquez-Perdomo is currently in the process of being released from ICE custody.