A British father living in Florida has described his experience in Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention as being "treated like a murderer." Connor Read, 29, who has resided in the United States since he was nine years old, alleges he was separated from his American wife and three-year-old twin sons during a green card interview on June 3.
Read was apprehended by four ICE agents at a facility in Tampa Bay, Florida. His wife, Jaelin, and their sons, Ryder and Ozzie, were in the waiting room at the time. Immigration officials informed Mrs. Read that her husband would not be returning home. Initially, Read spent eight days in the Pinellas County Jail, which he described as a "dirty" and "horrible" shared cell where breakfast was served at 2 a.m.
He was subsequently transported to a detention center in Louisiana with his hands and legs bound, an experience he likened to "transporting a bunch of murderers." The detention center holds individuals arrested for offenses including drug trafficking and domestic abuse. Read has been in detention for over seven weeks.
Mrs. Read recounted the distress of her sons following her husband's arrest. She told The Times that Ozzie refused to leave the waiting room, stating he was waiting for his father. Ryder ran towards the metal detectors amidst the chaos of approximately 150 people present.
"I’m carrying a wad of paperwork we had prepared for the last two and a half weeks before this appointment," Mrs. Read said. "They didn’t even have a look at any of it. It felt like such a ruse."
Read's attempted deportation stems from an arrest nearly a decade ago for bringing a bag of beers to a party, along with other minor offenses. He moved to the U.S. with his mother and stepfather and has lived there for over two decades.
On July 4, a month after her husband's detention, Mrs. Read shared a message on Facebook detailing the impact on their family. She expressed the daily struggle of explaining their father's absence to their sons, who frequently ask when he will return. "It breaks my heart to see these boys want for someone who’s been here their entire life," she wrote.
She also mentioned difficult decisions being made regarding the possibility of his deportation. A GoFundMe campaign established to support Mrs. Read and her sons has raised over £4,500.
As of early July, Mr. Read is among approximately 51,000 individuals held in ICE detention. This figure approaches the numbers seen in September 2019, a previous peak for migrant detentions.