ICE arrests of father, daughter spark protests in Albany, Malta

ALBANY — After a father and his 4-year-old daughter were detained by federal agents while they were on their way to school on Friday, protests over their detainment erupted in two counties within 48 hours.

One protest in the city of Albany, organized by the Capital Region Sanctuary Coalition, saw dozens of demonstrators gather on Saturday at the intersection of Central and North Lake avenues, close to where the two were taken into custody.

A spokesperson from the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement field office in Buffalo said Alexander Jose Regnault-Avila and the child were “illegal aliens from Venezuela” who had illegally entered the U.S. near Eagle Pass, Texas, in 2023. The spokesperson said an immigration judge issued an order for the pair’s removal on June 28, 2024, and they are being processed “for removal to Venezuela together.”

Protesters in Albany shouted out chants like, “Say it loud, say it clear, immigrants are welcome here,” and “No more cages, no more walls.” Young children displayed cardboard signs criticizing the agency. One sign read: “you hurt kids, we hurt you.”

Several attendees delivered speeches. One speaker, Liz Espinoza, read a written statement from Regnault-Avila’s partner. The statement described Regnault-Avila’s daughter as a 4-year-old who did not know and does not know what is happening.

“‘We didn’t deserve this. We didn’t deserve this happening,'” Espinoza read.

The CRSC, a group that tracks ICE activity, posted a video on social media of Regnault-Avila and his daughter being taken into custody by the agency Friday. The video shows the child holding her father’s hand as they enter into an SUV surrounded by members of law enforcement.

Protesters quickly gathered outside the ICE field office in Malta that afternoon.

Jahaira Roldan, a manager of organizing and strategy for the statewide New York Immigration Coalition, said she had not spoken to the father and daughter directly, but did speak to Regnault-Avila’s partner after the arrest in an interview before Saturday’s event. Roldan said she did not know if Regnault-Avila and his partner are married.

Regnault-Avila told his partner, from the ICE field office in Malta after he was detained, that he would be signing a flight order to be deported from the country Sunday, according to Roldan.

“They received a suitcase from their family member, and they are set to fly to Venezuela,” Roldan said.

Roldan said Regnault-Avila’s daughter was on her way to school at Albany International Academy the morning she was arrested. The Times Union is not revealing the name of Regnault-Avila’s daughter because of her age.

A spokesperson for the Albany City School District did not respond to a request for comment Saturday.

Heather Benno, vice president of the academy’s parent teacher association, confirmed that Regnault-Avila’s daughter was a student at the school and said she was enrolled in pre-K.

The protests in Albany and Malta are among many anti-ICE protests organized across the Capital Region in the months following the deaths of U.S. citizens Renee Good and Alex Pretti at the hands of federal agents earlier this year, including a protest outside the Capitol in Albany that called attention to the January detainment of an 11-year-old in Albany and multiple other Albany City School District students.

Previously: Leaders, teachers decry ICE at Capitol rally after students detained | Anti-ICE protesters gather at rallies across Capital Region

Roldan said Regnault-Avila’s partner was afraid to speak with the media when a Times Union reporter asked to speak with her directly. 

ICE, in a statement, encouraged parents who are in the country illegally “to take control of their departure” by using a U.S. Customs and Border Patrol app to begin the process of self-deportation.