Mom Detained by ICE After US Citizen Husband Petitions for Her Green Card

Rosmery Alvarado, a Guatemalan immigrant married to a recently naturalized U.S. citizen, was detained Wednesday after arriving at a U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) field office for what she believed was the first step in her residency process, her daughter, Carina Moran told Newsweek.

Moran told Newsweek that her mother is "currently held with a deportation order."

Newsweek has reached out to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and USCIS via email on Friday. Newsweek has also filed an online contact form with Alvarado's attorney.

Why It Matters

Alvarado's detention comes amid an immigration crackdown under the Trump administration, during which some people with valid documentation—including green cards or visas—have been detained and face legal jeopardy. Her family maintains that Alvarado was seeking to stay in the U.S. through legal pathways, with her husband becoming a naturalized citizen in March.

President Donald Trump vowed to prevent illegal immigrants with criminal histories or backgrounds from entering and staying in the U.S. He has pledged to launch the largest mass deportation operation in U.S. history and has detained and deported thousands of people in recent months.

Others have also been detained after appearing at Department of Homeland Security (DHS) offices, including Mohsen Mahdawi, a U.S. permanent resident for 10 years who was detained by ICE agents in Colchester, Vermont, during a naturalization interview, and Cliona Ward, who is being held at San Francisco International Airport after delivering requested paperwork.

What To Know

Alvarado, 42, a Pittsburg, Kansas resident, first came to the U.S. as a minor, Moran told Newsweek. Her husband, Nixon, who was born in El Salvador, became a U.S. citizen last month. Moran and her siblings are U.S. citizens.

Moran's father filed a form re-petitioning for his wife Alvarado to begin the green card process shortly after obtaining his citizenship, and both of them received official documentation requesting their appearance at the field office, according to CBS 42.

On Wednesday, Moran and her parents arrived at the Kansas City USCIS field office for her "green card interview," Moran told Newsweek in an email.

She told Newsweek that her father was "asked to step out and minutes later she [Alvarado] was arrested."

She wrote in a Facebook post that her mother "was taken out the back side of the building and put into a white van."

Alvarado is being held at an ICE facility several hours away in Chase County Detention Center, Moran told Newsweek. Newsweek has been unable to confirm Alvarado's location in the ICE detainee database.

"We were told she will be sent back to her country within 2-3 days," she wrote in her social media post.

Moran told Newsweek that her mother has a deportation order back to Guatemala. Her daughter said the last time she spoke with her mother was Thursday night.

Moran has set up a GoFundMe for legal expenses and "medical care for her diabetes and tumor treatments."

What People Are Saying

Assistant Homeland Security Secretary Tricia McLaughlin previously told Newsweek: "The Trump administration is enforcing immigration laws—something the previous administration failed to do. Those who violate these laws will be processed, detained and removed as required."

Carina Moran told CBS 42: "It feels like she's been stripped away from me, and I feel like I'm never going to see her again. I've been with my mom my entire life. I don't know what it's like to not have her. [I] have to tell my younger brothers that they're not going to get to see their mom. It makes me feel awful to see my dad struggling the way he is."

What Happens Next

It is unclear what the next steps in her immigration case are. The family's attorney has filed a deportation stop which is awaiting approval.

Update 4/25/25, 6:26 p.m. ET: This article has been updated with additional information and a new photo.