Venezuelan Immigrant Detained at Doral Hotel, Faces $80K Debt, June 12

Bryan José Rojas Galofre, a Venezuelan immigrant, was detained by ICE at Trump National Doral in January 2025 during a honeymoon trip with his U.S. citizen wife. He spent over three months in Florida custody, lost his $29-per-hour factory job, and his family incurred over $80,000 in debt. The detention reflects a wider immigration crackdown affecting thousands of non-citizens married to or related to U.S. citizens.

How the Detention Unfolded

Rojas arrived in the United States in September 2021 from Venezuela and turned himself in to Border Patrol. He was released while his asylum application was being processed. He worked at a brake disc factory in Wisconsin, earning $29 per hour and was promoted to line supervisor. In January 2025, he and his wife, Socorro Zaragosa, 22, drove from Wisconsin to Miami for their honeymoon. They planned to stay at Trump National Doral starting January 28 to see the beach and catch a glimpse of President Trump, who was inaugurating a Republican retreat at the hotel on January 27. At a hotel security checkpoint, Rojas was detained by ICE and taken to a facility in Florida.

Financial and Personal Toll

Rojas spent more than three months in ICE custody and faced accusations of gang affiliation. He feared deportation to El Salvador. The family lost their house and car, depleted his 401(k), and accumulated over $80,000 in debt. Rojas lost his stable job and work permit. His wife, a U.S. citizen who supports President Trump, was left alone to care for their newborn baby for months. She told Noticias Telemundo: “What he is doing to migrants isn’t fair. What happened to my family wasn’t fair.”

Broader Immigration Enforcement Pattern

Thousands of U.S. citizens’ spouses and parents are caught up in immigration crackdowns under the Trump administration. According to ABC News analysis of ICE data, more than 400,000 individuals with no violent criminal history have been targeted, including parents and spouses of U.S. citizens. Only 3% of recent ICE detainees had a violent felony conviction. Immigration courts are also seeing packed “mega” master calendar hearings designed to speed up deportations, with some judges handling 88 cases on a single docket.

The Family’s Reflection

Rojas told Noticias Telemundo: “In the end, it was a bad decision” about the trip to Doral. His wife remains a Trump supporter but expressed frustration with immigration policies that separated her from her husband. The case illustrates the human cost of enforcement actions targeting immigrants regardless of family ties or prior legal status.

Final Thoughts

Rojas’ detention at Doral reveals how immigration enforcement sweeps affect families with mixed legal status, even those with U.S. citizen spouses. The case is one of 400,000+ involving non-violent individuals, showing the scale of current enforcement operations.

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