ICE releases migrant to donate kidney

Venezuelan traveled to US to aid dying brother

By: Michael Loria
USA Today

CHICAGO - A Venezuelan man who traveled to the U.S. to donate a kidney to his dying brother but was detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents was released Friday [04/04/2025] to eventually undergo the procedure.
..... The pair of brothers grew up close together in Venezuela, but like many in the country became separated by distance as each pursued a stable life amid the South American country's cratering economy and society. That led Jose Alfredo Pacheco to the United States, but renal disease threatened to cut short his life.
..... His brother, Jose Gregorio Gonzalez, hoped to give him a chance by donating his kidney, only immigration agents arrested him before completing the procedure.
..... ICE's detainment of Gonzalez, 43, last month [03/2025] sparked protests in Chicago. amid pressure from activists and lawmakers, including Democratic Senators Tammy Duckworth and Dick Durbin of Illinois, federal authorities released Gonzalez form a nearby detention center.
..... I'm extremely happy for the liberation of my brother. ... We fought for one month and one day to reach this goal," Pacheco, 37, told reporters in Chicago on April 4. [2025] He had to stop speaking at points as he welled up with emotion over his reunion with his brother. "They separated us for a month where I didn't know what was happening with him, imagine that."
..... The two brothers spoke at a news conference at a legal center alongside Representative Jesus Chuy Garcia, D-Illinois, and representative from the Resurrection Project, a local immigrant justice group that provides legal support for the brothers.
..... "This case reminds us of the urgency for immigrant justice," said Garcia, who is from Mexico. "It is troubling that this arrest, detention and incarceration occurred because, like this instance, there have been other instances where people are being arrested without a warrant, where we can only assume profiling is taking place based on people's appearance, where they work, where they walk, where they go to church, and that's reprehensible."
.... ICE's release of Gonzalez comes amid a fraught few months for immigrates across the country. Federal agents nationwide have detained immigrants who have permission to work in the country and sent them mot just out of the country but to a foreign jails, including a notorious prison in El Salvador.
..... Among those swept up was a Texas family seeking medical care for a daughter recovering from brain surgery. the family is currently appealing their deportation to Mexico.
..... President Donald Trump's publicly stated goals of significantly higher detentions and deportations across the country reflect his campaign promises to toughen border controls and kick out people he deems unwanted.
..... ICE spokesperson David L. Yost said Gonzalez was out "on humanitarian grounds."
..... Peter Meinecke, an attorney for the bothers, explained the conditions of Gonzalez's release. The older brother is being let out for one year in order to finish determining the compatibility of the organ donation.
..... He is allowed to work during that year and is expected to check in with immigration agents. At the end of that year, he may be detained and deported, Meineche said.
..... Gonzalez, who was detained for just over a month at ICE centers in Indiana and Illinois, appeared shocked but briefly addressed reporters.
..... "I'm very happy, and I thank everyone," he said. "This is unbelievable, I never imagined this was possible."

Journey to Chicago

..... The two brothers come from the Venezuelan city of Guanare, the capital of the state of Portuguese, according to their attorney.
..... Like millions in the country, Pacheco left for the United States amid rising violence.
..... Pacheco arrived in the U.S. in 2022 and eventually settled in Cicero, Illinois, an immigrant community outside Chicago. He delivers packages for Amazon under a permit that allows him to work while his asylum case is pending, Meinecke said.
..... He was diagnosed with renal disease at the end of 2023, prompting his older brother to also head north to donate his kidney. Pacheco has to go for dialysis three times a week in four-hour stints, Meineche said.
..... Gonzalez arrived in early 2024, and after being detained for a few months, was let out in March of that year. [2024] He joined his brother in Illinois and became the ailing man's primary caretaker, according to Meinecke.
..... the brothers were leaving the house in the early morning for Pacheco's dialysis appointment when plainclothes immigration agents arrived and detained Gonzalez last month. [03/2025]
..... they asked Gonzalez to identify himself and, after confirming his identity detained him without a warrant, according to their attorney.
..... Meineche, who also represents other immigrants in Chicago, said Gonzalez's release reflected a rare glimmer of hope amid what have been a desperate few months.

Campaign to release brother

..... The arrest sparked protests in Chicago after the Chicago Tribune first reported the story, and nearly 2,000 people have signed a petition shared by the Tribune supporting Gonzalez's release.
..... Top lawmakers in Illinois also pressured ICE to release Gonzalez. "Today [04/04/2025] is a day for family, this is a happy reunion, and we hope to have many of these in the future," Garcia said Friday. [04/04/2025] "But we hope we don't need them, because that'll mean we have returned to normalcy and constitutional rule,: Garcia lamented the fear Trump's immigration enforcement policies have had on the heavily Hispanic part of Illinois he represents where people have reported being afraid to be seen on the street since Trump came into office. "Children are being affected, families are afraid, small businesses are hurting as well, and for the most part all immigrates want to do is work, help, be a part of the community and, yes, be a part of our country," Garcia said

..... Contributing: Eduardo Cuevas and Trevor Hughes, USA Today

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