Venezuelan asylum applicant detained at Los Angeles ICE office after nine years
Maria Fernanda Gomez Fuentes, a Venezuelan citizen who entered the U.S. on a B-2 visa in 2016 and filed for asylum within one year, was detained by ICE on April 2, 2026 when she appeared for her scheduled asylum interview at the Los Angeles Asylum Office in Tustin, California. Despite maintaining lawful employment and having no criminal history over nine years, the interview was not conducted and she was instead transported to the Adelanto ICE Processing Center. The court granted her temporary restraining order application, ordering that she receive an individualized bond hearing within three days.
























