PASADENA, Texas – Two weeks ago, life changed forever for one Pasadena family after Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents detained and deported two of their loved ones.
On the morning of Oct. 27, ICE officers arrived at the family’s home and took the woman’s husband and his brother into custody. Both men have since been deported to Mexico, leaving their wives, children, and other relatives behind, struggling to decide what to do next.
KPRC 2 first met the family shortly after the raid in Pasadena.
The family says the two men who were deported were the primary breadwinners, and their absence has upended everything.
“They said if they didn’t turn themselves in, they would throw tear gas inside the home,” Margarita Barron said in Spanish during an interview hours after the raid.
Family members told KPRC 2 that agents surrounded their home and ordered the men to come out. When they did, they were immediately handcuffed and taken away.
Since then, Barron and her relatives have been trying to pick up the pieces.
They told KPRC 2 they’re now in the process of selling most of their belongings to reunite with the deported men in Mexico.
Community members and strangers have stepped in to help the family with donations as they prepare to leave everything behind.