13-year-old denied immigration, caught in Honduras throughout trip after officers say absent dad must signal on his return

HOUSTON — A Texas mom is preventing to deliver her teenage son residence after he was detained by immigration in Honduras.

They’d no downside leaving america, however in making an attempt to come back again, they have been allegedly advised the boy wanted consent from each mother and pop to journey regardless of mother having full custody.

Ingrid Garcia advised our Houston sister station, ABC13 Eyewitness Information, that her son’s father has not been within the image for over a decade and does not pay youngster help, so this caught her off guard.

Immigration lawyer Kim Bruno advised Eyewitness Information that whereas this example isn’t exceptional, it is uncommon.

She appears to assume the strict enforcement is a consequence of youngsters coming over the border with out correct identification and falling prey to trafficking.

There are almost 2,000 miles of separation between Ingrid Garcia and her son, Jahir. They went to Honduras collectively, however Jahir’s keep was unexpectedly prolonged.

“I wanna come again,” the boy mentioned, telling his mother he missed her and his buddies.

Garcia divorced Jahir’s father in Honduras and moved along with her son to the Houston space when he was simply 3 years previous.

“I begin with nothing. I realized building and easy methods to construct a home,” she mentioned.

With blood, sweat, and tears, Garcia constructed her personal American dream. In September, she acquired her citizenship, and in early December, Jahir was granted his visa to journey.

“I used to be so pleased with myself as a result of I did every little thing. I attempted each day to be a very good individual, and I deserve to remain right here,” she mentioned.

On Dec. 23, Garcia and her son determined to make the journey to Honduras for the primary time in a decade. Happiness shortly turned to panic when Garcia was pressured to go away Jahir behind.

“Everyone was crying, my brother, my mother. I used to be so comfortable to be in my nation,” she mentioned. “They mentioned I can not deliver my son again as a result of I want permission from his dad, however I advised them that I’ve the custody and he lives with me.”

Bruno mentioned these components do not matter and that authorities have a authorized proper to maintain Jahir behind. The rationale for the tight rules, she says, is a part of an even bigger concern.

“Let’s return to our borders, our inflow of individuals coming in and our borders being flooded with folks bringing youngsters over that we could not establish or discover who they even belonged to,” Bruno mentioned.

Bruno mentioned Garcia must get a written notarized letter from Jahir’s father allowing his return to the U.S.

“I’ve been divorced for 10 years, and it arduous to have that communication with him,” she mentioned.

Her solely different avenue is to have her native congressman advocate on her behalf, which is one thing Bruno says isn’t a simple course of.

For now, Jahir is within the care of his grandmother caught in a spot that is not residence and lacking college at Cleveland ISD. Plus, they’re each coping with sudden well being points.

Whereas caught in Honduras, Jahir obtained kidney stones and has to get surgical procedure on Friday. On Monday, Garcia discovered she had gallstones and underwent surgical procedure on Wednesday.

Garcia is devastated however decided to shut that hole of separation.

Eyewitness Information reached out to the U.S. Embassy in Honduras. Congressman Dan Crenshaw’s Workplace mentioned they’ll attempt to help and immigration help non revenue.

For updates on this story, comply with Alex Bozarjian on Fb, X and Instagram.