Luis Manuel Aviles, the father of a USS Lincoln sailor father detained in Key West, was held by immigration authorities shortly after 11 a.m. ET on Saturday. The Department of Homeland Security said Border Patrol arrested him during a traffic stop in Key West, Florida, and said he would remain in ICE custody pending removal proceedings.
Joshua Aviles said on Facebook that he is aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln and has been deployed for over nine months in the Middle East. He wrote that he has been working 12+ hour days while trying to get his father released, adding, "I’ve been deployed for over nine months, out at sea in the Middle East aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln, fighting for a country that has given me everything," and, "I love you with all my heart. Please stay strong. I’m coming home, Dad,"
Joshua Aviles and the Lincoln
The Navy said Saturday that the Lincoln had officially left the Middle East en route to the West Coast. The trip could take a month or more, and the ship had gone more than eight months without a port call after it visited a port in December. Joshua Aviles said the carrier left its home port of San Diego on Nov. 25.
Katty Delgado on Luis Manuel Aviles
Katty Delgado said Luis Manuel Aviles has been in the United States for roughly 20 years and said she had no knowledge of an arrest history or criminal allegations against him. She also said, "He’s doing everything the right way," while DHS said he entered the United States illegally at an unknown date and location.
The case now turns on removal proceedings in ICE custody, which will determine whether he remains detained while Joshua Aviles keeps serving aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln. Joshua Aviles said, "This is heartbreaking for me," and wrote that he did not know how he could keep working through the deployment while his father was somewhere being treated like a criminal.
