Latest news with #LuisLeon
Hindustan Times
2 days ago
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
Who is Luis Leon? Chilean national wrongfully deported to Guatemala found alive; family misinformed about his death
Trump's immigrant crackdown's latest victim turns out to be an 82-year-old Chilean national from Allentown, Pennsylvania, named Luis Leon, who was presumed to be dead by his family until a recent call confirmed his location in a Guatemalan hospital. What started as a simple visit to a US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) office with his wife on June 20 to replace his green card, kept in a wallet which got stolen, turned into something much more serious, as reported by The Morning Call. The man was arrested by officers on the spot, and the family hadn't received any update on his whereabouts ever since. A simple green card renewal turned into a nightmare after an 82-year-old vanished and was presumed dead by his family, only to be later found hospitalized in Guatemala. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File)(AP) Also Read: SSI payment schedule August: When will you receive your social security checks? Who is Luis Leon? Popular in his neighborhood as a handyman, Leon first came to the US back in 1987 after being granted political asylum during the time of dictator Augusto Pinochet's rule, as confirmed by his granddaughter to The Morning Call. Now living in America, he frequently went fishing with friends and was quite skilled with tools. His family claims that Leon has been an exemplary citizen, without being booked for so much as a parking ticket. Also Read: Radar video shows moment Southwest flight avoided mid-air crash with Hawker Hunter- Watch What happened to Luis Leon? On July 9, the man's wife received a phone call from an unknown number, which told the family that Leon had passed away. However, recently, a relative based in Chile came to know that he was alive and had been moved to a hospital in Guatemala after first being transferred to Minnesota. The ICE refuses to provide any further clarification on this matter. Digital databases of the ICE do not show any records of even arresting Leon in the first place, as reported by The Independent. A few days after his initial arrest, the family was contacted by an immigration lawyer who said she could help with the matter. The family claims that this is the same person who anonymously called them about Leon's death as well. The family, including his granddaughter, is now set to head to Guatemala on Saturday (July 26) to check up on and reunite with Leon. 'I can see all my family is in pain now,' she told The Morning Call. (By Stuti Gupta)
New York Post
5 days ago
- Politics
- New York Post
Viral story about grandpa secretly ‘deported' to Guatemala by ICE, then found ‘dead' is hoax: feds
A widely-reported story about a Pennsylvania grandfather being secretly snatched by ICE agents and deported to Guatemala is nothing but a 'hoax,' according to Homeland Security — as it emerged he may even have died six years ago. Luis Leon's family told reporters that the 82-year-old Chilean national had been handcuffed and taken away by federal officers when he went to a green card appointment in Philadelphia on June 20. They then claimed they were told he had died in ICE custody — but then he turned up alive at a hospital in Guatemala. Advertisement 3 The viral story circulating that Luis Leon, 82, was secretly deported by ICE agents turns out to be a 'hoax,' according to Homeland Security (DHS). Leon Family The story, which was initially reported by Allentown outlet the Morning Call, before being picked up by lefty outlets including the Daily Beast, the Guardian and the Independent, was shut down by the Department for Homeland Security. 'ICE never arrested or deported Luis Leon to Guatemala. Nor does ICE 'disappear' people — this is a categorical lie being peddled to demonize ICE agents who are already facing an 830 percent increase in assaults against them,' DHS Assistant Press Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement. Advertisement 'This was a hoax peddled by the media who rushed to press without pausing to corroborate the facts with DHS. This was journalistic malpractice,' she said. The DHS also said there is 'no record of the man appearing at any green card appointment in or around the area of Philadelphia' on June 20. Leon's family told the reporter that he was sent to a Minnesota detention facility and that a woman claiming to be an immigration lawyer called them to say he had died in ICE custody and offered to help them, without disclosing how she knew about the case. 3 Leon's family told reporters he was taken away by officials in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, after going to a green card appointment — but then he turned up alive at a hospital in Guatemala. Paul Martinka Advertisement They claimed they later found out he was in a hospital in Guatemala from a Chilean relative. But the Guatemalan Institute of Migration, which coordinates with ICE on all deportations from the US, said it had not received anyone matching Leon's name, age or nationality, the Associated Press reported. And while Guatemala has agreed to receive US deportees from other Central American countries, the agreement doesn't extend to South America. 3 The story of Leon's deportation circulated through many outlets before DHS shut down the story. Leon Family Advertisement Leon was granted political asylum in the US in 1987 and worked in a leather manufacturing plant for 40 years before retiring, the Morning Call reported. However, ICE states its only record of Leon entering the US is in 2015 from Chile under a visa waiver program. A death certificate matching Leon's name and date of birth from the Chilean capital of Santiago in 2019 was presented to the Morning Call by a Chilean journalist, Jose Del Pino. The Morning Call published an updated story on Monday defending its reporting, saying its reporters 'repeatedly requested information from Ice during its reporting; an Ice spokesperson previously refused to confirm details, including whether or not Leon was even at the Philadelphia office, and said Monday that Ice investigators were not able to contact the family.' Leon's supposed family told the Morning Call in a statement that they would no longer speak to the media and asked for privacy. The Morning Call did not respond immediately to requests for comment.
The Guardian
6 days ago
- Politics
- The Guardian
Homeland security denies reports that Ice ‘secretly deported' Pennsylvania grandfather
Confusion swirled around the fate of a Chilean resident of the US after the Department of Homeland Security called reports of his deportation to Guatemala a 'hoax'. On 18 July, the Morning Call newspaper of Allentown, Pennsylvania, reported that the family of the man, Luis Leon, said he was handcuffed after showing up at to immigration office on 20 June to report a lost green card. They said he was first sent to a detention facility in Minnesota, then to Guatemala, where they said a Chilean relative informed them he was in a hospital. The report said Leon was 82 years old and had come to the US after being granted political asylum in 1987 after being tortured under the regime of the Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet. It said in his nearly 40 years living in the US he spent his career working in a leather manufacturing plant, raised a family and had since retired. DHS, however, denied in a statement that Leon had been deported and that there was no record of Leon having a green card appointment in Philadelphia on that date. The department also said that its only record of Leon entering the US 'was from 2015 from Chile under the visa waiver program'. The Guatemalan government also denied that Leon had been deported. In a statement, the Guatemalan Migration Institute said it coordinates with Ice on all deportations from the US and that no one matched Leon's name, age or citizenship, according to the Associated Press. The AP added that Guatemala agreed in February to receive people deported from the US who are from other Central American countries, but that its agreement does not extend to Chileans. On Monday, Morning Call published a new story reflecting DHS and Guatemala's claims, and noting that it 'repeatedly requested information from Ice during its reporting; an Ice spokesperson previously refused to confirm details, including whether or not Leon was even at the Philadelphia office, and said Monday that Ice investigators were not able to contact the family'. It added that Leon's granddaughter, Nataly, who refused to provide her last name, said she had visited Leon in a hospital in Guatemala City, where she claimed he was being treated for pneumonia. But the outlet also reported that a Chilean journalist, Jose Del Pino, said a doctor at the hospital in question had no record of him. Del Pino also reportedly provided a copy of an alleged death certificate to the Morning Call for a man with the same name and date of birth who died in Santiago, Chile, in 2019. It added that Del Pino said Chilean citizens all have national identification numbers, and none matches another person with that name and birthday. Late on Sunday her family issued a statement saying they would no longer speak to media and asked for privacy, and Leon's granddaughter did not respond to the Morning Call's further requests for comment on Monday. The Guardian has approached Ice, the Chilean embassy in the US, the municipality of Allentown and various immigration organizations for comment. An attorney at Campos Firm said multiple immigration attorneys had tried to contact the family asking to represent them, but could not reach them.
Time of India
6 days ago
- Time of India
Real Story of Luis Leon: 82-Year-Old Green Card Holder Vanished by US Immigration
नेहा उपाध्याय Authored by: • नेहा उपाध्याय Contributed by: | Navbharat Times• 21 Jul 2025, 11:00 pm Real Story of Luis Leon: 82-Year-Old Green Card Holder Vanished by US Immigration | अमेरिका में 82 वर्षीय ग्रीन कार्ड होल्डर लुइस लियोन की सच्ची कहानी
Yahoo
7 days ago
- Yahoo
US immigration says it did not deport Chilean man living in Pennsylvania, refuting report
WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. immigration authorities on Monday denied reports that they detained or deported a Chilean man living in the country on a green card. The Morning Call of Allentown, Pennsylvania, reported that Luis Leon, 82, ended up in Guatemala after being handcuffed in a Philadelphia immigration office, where he went to replace his lost green card June 20. The report, which said he won asylum in 1987, relied on family accounts. The Morning Call reported Sunday that Leon was recovering from pneumonia in Guatemala and did not plan to return to the United States, according to his granddaughter. A phone message left Monday at a number linked to the granddaughter was not returned. The Department of Homeland Security said it had no record of Leon appearing for an appointment in or near Philadelphia June 20 and said he legally entered the U.S. in 2015 as a visitor. A U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement spokesman, Jason Koontz, said the agency didn't deport Leon anywhere. The Guatemalan Migration Institute said in a statement Sunday that it coordinates with ICE on all deportations from the United States and that no one matched Leon's name, age or citizenship. Solve the daily Crossword
