A street food vendor who was arrested last weekend now faces deportation after he was released into US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody, according to a local activist group.
José Carlos Hernández Pérez, a mobile food vendor who was seen being arrested on August 6 near the Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas sign on Metropolitan Police Department body camera footage, now faces charges of assault on a protected person , violation of the regulations on street food vendors and obstruction of authority.
The 36-year-old detainee was released from the Clark County Detention Center on Aug. 8, according to court records. He was immediately detained by ICE, according to a spokesperson for Make the Road Nevada.
“I am shocked and heartbroken that my father is at risk of deportation. I am mentally and emotionally exhausted,” said Sandra Hernández, the 14-year-old daughter of Hernández Pérez, in a Make the Road Nevada news release. “I cry myself to sleep knowing that my father is detained and he can’t come home. I want him to come home with me.”
The Nye County Detention Center confirmed that Hernandez Perez has been in custody since Wednesday. ICE could not immediately be reached for comment on Friday.
Hernandez was previously detained by ICE when he came to the United States from Mexico as an asylum seeker, according to a petition created by Make the Road Nevada. He is currently awaiting a court date for his immigration status, the group said.
Sen. Edgar Flores, who represents Las Vegas and is also an immigration attorney, is representing Hernández Pérez, according to a letter of support advocating for Hernández Pérez’s release that was posted on the family’s business Instagram page. Flores did not immediately respond to a comment Friday.
The letter describes Hernández Pérez as the main breadwinner for his family who is unable to return to his country of origin due to the violent conditions from which he and his family fled.
The Metropolitan Police did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Friday.
“Our family is heartbroken that ICE detained my brother,” Yadira, Hernández Pérez’s sister, said in the news release. “Our family is asking ICE to please bring my brother home with his daughter and his family.”
