Military Veteran’s Wife Detained by ICE in Dallas, June 14

Retired Staff Sergeant Wilmer Trujillo, who served 20 years in the U.S. Army and Texas National Guard, is pleading with immigration officials to release his wife, Arelys Barahona-Martinez, 40. ICE detained her on June 10 during a routine check-in at an agency office in Dallas. The Department of Homeland Security cited a deportation order from November 2005, when Barahona-Martinez illegally entered the U.S. from Honduras.

How the Detention Happened

Trujillo accompanied his wife to what they believed was a routine immigration appointment on June 10. An ICE officer told him his wife would not be leaving that day. She was then transferred to a detention facility in Oklahoma. Barahona-Martinez first crossed the U.S. border illegally in 2005, was released, left the country, and returned in 2018. She has lived in Princeton, Texas with Trujillo and his two daughters from a prior marriage since their marriage in 2020.

What the Government Says

The Department of Homeland Security stated that Barahona-Martinez received full due process and was issued a final removal order by an immigration judge on November 2, 2005. DHS said the Trump administration will not ignore the rule of law and that she will remain in ICE custody pending removal. The agency confirmed she entered the U.S. illegally in 2005.

The Veteran’s Plea

Trujillo told CBS News on Friday that his “heart broke” when told his wife would be deported. He served in Iraq and Afghanistan and retired in 2021. “I love this country, and for this country to rip apart my family and take away my wife; she’s my rock and she is my backbone to this family,” he said. Barahona-Martinez’s 20-year-old son, a U.S. citizen, has neurofibromatosis, a medical condition that causes tumors. The case marks the latest detention of a military spouse over immigration status.

Broader ICE Detention Concerns

The detention comes as ICE custody deaths have risen sharply. In 2025, the first year of Trump’s second term, 32 people died in ICE custody, the highest number in more than 20 years. As of June 2026, 19 immigrants have died in ICE detention facilities this year. The Winn Correctional Center in Louisiana, where one death occurred in early June, has faced investigations over alleged negligence.

Final Thoughts

Trujillo’s case reflects growing friction between immigration enforcement and military families. DHS says it is following the law by enforcing a 21-year-old deportation order, but the veteran argues his family should not be separated.

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