Military spouse pulled from Brazil deportation flight and freed by ICE
Maisa Lopes Eliaser, the wife of an Army staff sergeant, was taken off a deportation flight to Brazil after ICE officers intervened and she was returned to Louisiana.
After more than a month in immigration custody, Maisa Lopes Eliaser was scheduled for deportation to Brazil when ICE officers on the flight received a phone call and asked whether she wanted to continue the journey. She elected to return, staying on the plane and landing in Louisiana while other detainees were taken off in Brazil. Her husband, Army Staff Sgt. Alexis Jaramillo, a decade-long service member, had been on leave to look after their five-year-old son during her detention.
The incident prompted a Congressional Democratic inquiry and involvement from Senator Mark Kelly, and the nonprofit Repatriate Our Patriots assisted in securing her release. The Department of Homeland Security has not responded to comment, and Eliaser still faces a pending hearing to reopen her case and pursue a green-card application. She says she continues to struggle with trauma from her time in detention.
Why it matters
The case shows how immigration enforcement can disrupt military families and raises questions about deportation policies.
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