Undocumented man arrested after leaving sanctuary to meet with immigration officials
After living almost a year in a Durham church, an undocumented man was arrested Friday by immigration officers when he left the church to keep an appointment with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services in Morrisville.
Samuel Oliver-Bruno, 47, has been living in the basement of CityWell United Methodist Church for 11 months while he petitions to have his deportation to Mexico delayed. Churches are one of the few places where U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement does not make arrests.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services requested Oliver-Bruno to appear in person to provide fingerprints, a necessary step for his petition, according to a news release from Alerta Migratoria, an immigrants rights advocacy organization in North Carolina.
Oliver-Bruno was accompanied by faith leaders, family members and other supporters Friday morning. He was arrested by immigration authorities inside the USCIS office.
When asked by The News & Observer why Oliver-Bruno was arrested, ICE spokesperson Bryan Cox said in an email:
“Mr. Oliver-Bruno is a convicted criminal who has received all appropriate legal process under federal law, has no outstanding appeals, and has no legal basis to remain in the U.S.”
USCIS did not comment on Oliver-Bruno’s case.
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