Update: Undocumented Immigrant Deported From Fairfax County

(Updated 4:09 p.m. June 20) FAIRFAX COUNTY, VA — A Fairfax County undocumented immigrant was deported to El Salvador Wednesday, June 14, Immigration and Customs Enforcement confirmed to Patch.

Liliana Cruz Mendez, 30, a mother of two that lived in Virginia for 11 years, was detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement on May 18 during a check in at the Fairfax ICE office. The detainment came after she received two stays of removal under the Obama administration in 2014 and 2015.

She originally received a misdemeanor for driving without a license in 2006. ICE rejected a request to release her after Gov. Terry McAuliffe pardoned her for the original misdemeanor.

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Fernanda Durand, a spokesperson for CASA, a Latino organization that spearheaded an effort for her release, told Patch Cruz Mendez has been moved to Louisiana in anticipation of deportation.

ICE spokesperson Matthew Bourke said the agency will confirm the date of deportation once it's complete. He told Patch in a statement, "ICE doesn’t confirm impending removals to protect the safety of individuals in our custody, as well as our officers."

Advocates for Cruz Mendez argued that her deportation would separate the family, who lives in Falls Church. Her two young children are U.S. citizens, and her son Steven's asthma and learning disability would be difficult to treat in the U.S., CASA said in a letter to ICE. Durand added that Mendez Cruz's husband had back surgery last week, so he is not immediately able to travel. He is in the process of getting a work permit or Green Card.

When asked if Cruz Mendez got to see her family before the deportation, Durand said, "She went to visit them, but she's already been moved."

The deportation comes as Cruz Mendez was awarded a CASA Justice Award Tuesday, June 13. Family members accepted the award on her behalf.

Image courtesy of CASA