A Fort Lauderdale man is sharing the emotional moment his wife was detained by federal immigration agents — an encounter he captured on his phone as it unfolded.
Noah Lazega says his wife, 24-year-old Nicolth Hernandez-Lucero, was driving home Wednesday night when she was stopped by immigration agents. Within moments, she called him. As he listened in shock, he began recording the call.
“So you’re going to come with us tonight,” an agent can be heard telling Hernandez-Lucero in the recording shared with NBC6.
“Is there a reason that I got stopped?” she asks in the audio.
Moments later, her fear becomes clearer: “Am I gonna be detained?”
“Yeah,” responds the agent.
Lazega says he was stunned.
“I’m just listening, just in shock. I can’t believe what’s happening,” he told NBC6 Politics Reporter Hatzel Vela.
Newly married couple now separated
Lazega says the couple has been together for nearly four years and got married in December. They were planning to celebrate their marriage with a party later this month. As a U.S. citizen, Lazega says he had already begun the process of helping his wife adjust her immigration status.
According to Lazega, agents told her they were “in the area running plates” when she was stopped near St. Ambrose Episcopal Church in Fort Lauderdale. He says she asked about probable cause but did not receive a clear explanation.
Hernandez-Lucero, who is from Colombia, has lived in the United States since she was 15, her husband said, adding she works as a surgical technician at a local hospital.
“She’s a kind, compassionate person, selfless,” Lazega said. “She helps people, saves people. She has a whole community behind her right now rooting for her.”
Attorney: She entered the U.S. legally
Hernandez-Lucero is now being held at a detention facility in Pompano Beach.
Her attorney, Justin Gould, says she entered the United States legally and has been going through the asylum process with her family — a process that can take years.
“This is a person, once again, who entered legally, who filed a case legally as a dependent through her parents and has been in this country with no criminal record,” Gould said.
An NBC6 search of Florida public records did not show any criminal history for Hernandez-Lucero.
Gould argues the immigration system is broken and says people like his client should not be behind bars.
“So now it is basically everybody’s illegal unless otherwise noted, and it’s just not OK,” Gould said. “Thisis not what the president promised.”
‘I love you so much’
During NBC6’s interview with Lazega, Hernandez-Lucero called him from detention.
“I love you so much,” he told her.
“I love you. I love you,” she replied.
Lazega says he hopes sharing their story will raise awareness for others facing similar situations.
“I hope we can get her out, get her help, raise awareness to other people that are going through this right now. They don’t deserve this. Nobody deserves this,” he said.
NBC 6 reached out to Immigration and Customs Enforcement for comment about Hernandez-Lucero’s case, but has not yet received a response.
Her attorney has filed for a bond hearing. The family is now waiting for a judge to respond and set a court date — as anxiety continues to grow for her husband, relatives and friends.