Three members of a Snohomish County family were detained and separated at the US/Mexican border while on vacation in Arizona last week, according to a family friend.
30-year-old Irvin Enriguez Olvera was visiting Arizona with his wife and parents when a family friend said they took a wrong turn and encountered border patrol agents. Olvera and his parents were detained, but his wife was not kept in custody, according to family friend Laura Sotelo Guerrera.
"The entire family is separated in different locations," said Sotelo. "Because they didn't have any legal documentation to show current, legal residency, they were detained in Arizona."
Olvera is a biology major at UW Bothell. According to Sotelo, Olvera is a youth leader in the Snohomish County Hispanic community. She said he helps run the family's tire shop in Everett while attending school.
Sotelo said details are murky, but that Olvera was separated from his parents while in custody. An Immigration and Customs enforcement website only says Olvera was detained, but gives no further details. An ICE spokesperson, when contacted Wednesday, could not provide any further information.
However, Representative Suzan DelBene (D-WA-1) is now involved. She wrote in a statement to KING 5:
"My staff has been working closely with the Enriquez/Olvera family to help bring their loved ones back home safely. Irvin Enriquez Olvera is a biology major at UW Bothell who wishes to be a trauma surgeon. His parents, Roberto and Candelaria, own a small tire business in Everett and are active community members. They are everything that is right with America, and yet they are being held against their will. I don’t see the justification for this. My team will continue to work with immigration officials to bring this family together again.”