Sister Leticia Ugboaja speaks in defense of other detained immigrants after her release from ICE custody in South Texas.
DALLAS — A South Texas nun, recently released from ICE custody, is speaking out for the first time just as a Southwest Airlines flight attendant is detained while at work and a TCU college student is deported to El Salvador, a country he left when he was three years old.
“There are many others in this same situation, people who have been given some form of protection under our laws, who have followed every rule asked of them, and who still live with uncertainty,” Sister Leticia Ugboaja, who is from Nigeria, said at a news conference.
This story continues below.
Ugboaja was released several hours after being detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers on June 28 while walking to Our Lady of Sorrows Church in McAllen, a few miles from the U.S.-Mexico border.
Parish officials posting on social media brought attention to Ugboaja’s arrest, and Congress members ultimately intervened on the nun’s behalf.
Her attorney, Carlos Garcia, said Thursday that in 2019 an immigration judge denied her application for asylum but also granted her protection from removal because she was likely to face torture in Nigeria. Garcia said Ugboaja has complied with everything required of her and had permission to work in the U.S.
When ICE detained Ugboaja in June, she wasn’t given much explanation as to why she was taken into custody, but that the U.S. planned to remove her to a third country, Garcia said.
Ugboaja is part of the Daughters of Mary Mother of Mercy and volunteered as an Extraordinary Minister of Holy Communion at Our Lady of Sorrows Church and also a registered nurse at South Texas Health System.
“Before anyone, anyone, anyone is being taken into custody,” Ugboaja said Thursday, “just to give them the chance, give them opportunity so that they can be heard.”
The family and friends of both a TCU student and a Southwest Airlines flight attendant are hoping for exactly that.
An ICE spokesperson confirmed in a statement that the agency arrested Lorenzo Thompson, whom they identified as an undocumented immigrant from Jamaica. They made the arrest at Nashville International Airport.
TWU Local 556, the union, wrote in a Facebook post that it has been in touch with Thompson’s family. The union is also working with legal counsel as well as the family’s attorney to understand the circumstances behind the detainment.
“TWU Local 556 will continue to monitor the situation closely and remain engaged as we learn more,” the union’s post said. “We appreciate our Members’ concern and support, as we all hope for a swift resolution to this situation.”
“Enzo was following every legal step toward citizenship,” a union statement continued. “He had a valid work visa and was a dedicated flight attendant, touching countless lives with his kindness. Today, we stand with our brother Enzo and his union family.”
Thompson allegedly entered the U.S. legally in 2021 with permission to stay six months but never left the country, officials claim. He was taken into custody without incident. Thompson will remain in ICE custody pending immigration proceedings.
A GoFundMe account seeks to raise funds for his legal defense.
Meanwhile, classmates and friends of a Texas Christian University student are also raising money for his defense, even after he has already been deported to his native El Salvador.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security confirmed Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers in Dallas took 20-year-old Luis Andrade-Garcia into custody on July 10 following his arrest by the Arlington Police Department. Federal officials said he was deported to El Salvador on July 21.
A GoFundMe campaign created to support Andrade-Garcia’s family describes him as a first-generation college student, Sam Houston High School’s Class of 2024 valedictorian and the recipient of multiple scholarships to attend TCU.
According to the fundraiser, Andrade-Garcia is pursuing a double major in accounting and business information systems and hopes to use his education to give back to his family and community.
The fundraiser also says he participated in cross country and the AVID program while in high school.
Organizers say money raised will help pay for legal representation, immigration-related legal expenses, communication costs and support for his family.
The fundraiser describes Andrade-Garcia as “genuine, hardworking, selfless, honest, dependable and humble.”
According to DHS, Andrade-Garcia was born in El Salvador and entered the U.S. near Hidalgo, Texas, in July 2009 and was ordered removed by an immigration judge in March 2010. Andrade-Garcia was three years old when he entered the U.S. The agency said he did not have lawful immigration status and “never took steps to obtain legal status,” including not applying for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA.
“Attending school in the United States does not confer lawful immigration status,” DHS said in a statement. “If a person enters our country illegally, they are subject to detention or deportation. Each illegal alien receives due process.”
The agency also said immigration enforcement operations are conducted under federal law and are “essential to protecting America’s national security, public safety, and economic strength.”
Andrade-Garcia’s deportation comes after a June 27 arrest in Arlington.
According to Arlington PD spokesperson Tim Ciesco, Andrade-Garcia was arrested on June 27 for public lewdness and evading police, which is a misdemeanor.
According to police, the officer activated emergency lights to detain Andrade-Garcia. Investigators said the driver moved into the driver’s seat, started the vehicle and drove away. The officer did not pursue but broadcast a description of the vehicle.
Around 12:25 a.m. on June 28, officers located the vehicle parked outside a home on Valley View Drive, police said. Officers identified the driver as Andrade-Garcia, who they said admitted driving away from the officer at the park.
Arlington police said Andrade-Garcia was arrested and booked into the Arlington City Jail on one count of evading arrest. DHS, however, said ICE took Andrade-Garcia into custody following his arrest by Arlington police.
Copyright 2025 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.