Three weeks after federal agents detained a family, including a 7-year-old girl, lawmakers are continuing efforts to secure their release.
GRESHAM, Ore. — Three weeks after a Gresham family was detained by ICE agents outside a Portland hospital, they remain held in a Texas detention center.
On Jan. 16, federal agents detained Darianny Liseth Gonzalez de Crespo, her husband, Yohendry de Jesus Crespo, and their 7-year-old daughter outside Adventist Health in southeast Portland. The parents were trying to take their daughter to see a doctor for a severe nosebleed.
“The first thing I did was cry. I cried and I cried and I cried,” said the family’s friend, Ana Linares Mendoza, recounting a recent phone call she received from the Texas detention center. She said Gonzalez told her the family’s health was suffering, especially the girl, who could hardly eat or sleep.
“The little girl is a bit weak because she’s not eating,” Mendoza said in Spanish. “That’s what [her mom] told me on Sunday. The little girl isn’t eating.”
Mendoza said the Crespo Gonzalez family came to the U.S. seeking asylum from political violence in Venezuela. She said they believed they were here legally, pending a court date for their asylum claim.
In a statement, a Department of Homeland Security spokesperson said the family was detained because they entered the U.S. illegally and were released through the CBP One app.
“These parents illegally entered [the] U.S. with their daughter in 2024 through the disastrous CBP One app and were released into the country by the Biden administration,” the statement said. “Any application for asylum does not preclude immigration enforcement. The law requires those in the country illegally claiming asylum to be detained pending removal. You can look it up in the statute.”
Congresswoman Maxine Dexter, D-Portland, said the family has asylum status and an active court date. On Thursday, she said she was blocked from visiting the South Texas Family Residential Center in Dilley, Texas, despite providing notice.
“DHS has something to hide,” Dexter said. “They know that if Americans could see what is happening inside this facility, the policy of imprisoning children and families would collapse overnight.”
Dexter said she planned to return to the detention facility on Friday.
Mendoza said she is raising money for the family to pay for limited food and water inside the detention center. She said she prays daily for their safe return.
“I have to have faith,” Mendoza said.