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Venezuelan mother and two children detained at bus stop, freed after 17 days by judge's order

May 14, 2026·Location: Alamo Heights, TX

Country of origin: Venezuela

Venezuelan mother and two children detained at bus stop, freed after 17 days by judge's order
Photo via WFAA

Maria Betania Uzcategui Castillo, a Venezuelan asylum-seeker with valid work authorization through 2030, and her two children, 11-year-old Victor Uzcategui-Labrador Jr. and 8-year-old Monserrat Uzcategui-Labrador, were detained by ICE agents at a school bus stop in Alamo Heights, Texas. The family had arrived at the U.S. border in 2021 seeking asylum, complied with prior immigration requirements, and had a court date scheduled for 2027. Both children attended Cambridge Elementary in the Alamo Heights Independent School District and were reported as deeply traumatized by the detention. The family spent 17 days at the South Texas Family Residential Center in Dilley, the country's largest family detention facility, while community members organized a rally and a fundraising campaign that raised more than $28,000 for legal fees. Her husband, Victor, and the family's attorney, Kate Lincoln-Goldfinch, worked to secure their release. U.S. District Judge Orlando Garcia ordered the family released, and they were freed pending future immigration hearings.

Timeline

May 14, 2026—Family released from detention after 17 days, pending immigration hearings
May 13, 2026—U.S. District Judge Orlando Garcia ordered the family's release
Apr 27, 2026—ICE agents detained Maria Betania Uzcategui Castillo and her two children at a school bus stop in Alamo Heights, Texas
Apr 27, 2026—Family transported to South Texas Family Residential Center in Dilley, Texas
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