Trump-Voting Parents 'Feel Betrayed' After ICE Agents Detain Their Son

Two people who voted for Donald Trump in the 2024 election have since said they "feel betrayed" by the president after their son was detained in Georgia.

Argentine American couple Martin Verdi and Debora Rey told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution they felt let down by the administration after their son, Agustin Gentile, 31, a green card holder, was sent to Stewart Detention Center in South Georgia. With roughly 1,700 detainees, the center is the country's second-largest immigrant jail.

Newsweek reached out to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and CoreCivic, the company that operated Stewart Detention Center, for comment.

Why It Matters

Trump has made immigration a key priority of his second administration. He has vowed to crack down on border security, carry out mass deportations, and end federal benefits for people entering the country.

His administration is also targeting people with green cards, despite the fact that green cards equate to lawful permanent residency. In April, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) posted on X that a green card holder's stay in the country is not guaranteed and could be revoked if they are deemed a threat to national interests.

Meanwhile, the detention this year of Mahmoud Khalil, a lawful permanent resident and activist, sparked outrage among immigrant advocates. The administration justified the detention under a statute that allows deportation based on "potentially serious adverse foreign policy consequences."

What To Know

Gentile, a father of two, was stopped by officials in February after returning from a trip abroad and landing at Los Angeles International Airport. DHS officials confiscated his green card and Argentine passport and directed him to report to a Customs and Border Protection (CBP) office in Raleigh, North Carolina, where he lives. Officials there detained him and sent him to a local county jail. He was then transferred to Stewart Detention Center.

Gentile was convicted in 2020 of infliction of injury and sentenced to three years' probation, according to court records seen by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. The case was closed in 2023.

He moved with his family from Argentina to the U.S. in the 1990s as a toddler.

What People Are Saying

Debora Rey told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution: "[Trump] didn't say he was going to do this, that he was going to go after people who have been here for a long time. He said he was going to go after all the criminals who came illegally.

"We feel betrayed, tricked. This is craziness."

"This was a massive deception what he did. Because the other side had shown us how indulgent they were (with immigration)."

CBP Assistant Commissioner Hilton Beckham previously told Newsweek in a statement: "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.

"Green card holders who have not broken any U.S. laws, committed application fraud, or failed to apply for a re-entry permit after a long period of travel have nothing to fear about entering and exiting the country."

What Happens Next

Verdi and Rey said that Gentile may consider asking to be returned to Argentina if his case takes too long to fight.

Meanwhile, the Trump administration announced Monday that it will pay migrants without legal status up to $1,000 to self-deport rather than await arrest.