ICE quietly deported this 82-year-old grandpa after a lost green card — his family thought he was dead for weeks
For nearly three weeks, the family of 82-year-old Luis Leon feared the worst — that he had died. The elderly Chilean immigrant, who had lived peacefully in Allentown, Pennsylvania, for decades, disappeared without a trace after a routine visit to a U.S. immigration office.
On June 20, Leon and his wife traveled to the Philadelphia immigration center to request a replacement for his lost green card. But instead of returning home, Leon was reportedly handcuffed and taken into custody by immigration officials — without any explanation, according to his family, as first reported by The Morning Call.
What followed was a nightmare. His loved ones searched frantically, contacting immigration offices, local hospitals, and even a morgue. On July 9, their worst fears appeared to be confirmed when someone called Leon’s wife claiming he had passed away.
However, relief came this week when the family discovered that Leon had been transferred from an ICE detention center in Minnesota to Guatemala. He is now hospitalized in Guatemala City, though it remains unclear why he was deported there, given that he has lived in the U.S. for decades.
Leon’s granddaughter, Nataly, told The Morning Call that the ordeal has been devastating for the entire family. “I can see all my family is in pain right now,” she said, adding that she plans to travel to Guatemala to be by her grandfather’s side. Leon suffers from diabetes, hypertension, and other chronic illnesses.
The emotional chaos only deepened when another mysterious call came shortly after his arrest — this time from a woman claiming to be an immigration attorney who offered to help post Leon’s bail. She refused to say how she learned about the case or where Leon was being held.
Leon was granted political asylum in the United States back in 1987 after surviving the brutal dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet in Chile. His family says he’s never had so much as a parking ticket on his record.
Sadly, Leon’s case is far from isolated. According to data compiled by the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse (TRAC), over 56,800 individuals are currently being held in ICE detention. Nearly three-quarters of them — around 72 percent — have no criminal convictions.
The Supreme Court recently issued a decision that allows for expanded deportation powers, giving the Trump administration broader authority to send immigrants to countries where they have no significant ties — a policy shift that may explain Leon’s expulsion, though officials have not confirmed this.
For Leon’s family, the ordeal has left lasting scars. They hope that by sharing his story, they can shed light on the disturbing realities many immigrants face — even those who have called the U.S. home for nearly four decades.
Note to our readers: This article is grounded in verified data and reporting: TRAC Immigration’s “Quick Facts” offers key nationwide statistics (TRAC), and the Morning Call reports on the ICE detention of Allentown grandfather Luis León ahead of his planned deportation to Guatemala (The Morning Call). All information has been cross-checked to ensure accuracy and transparency.
