NYC Pizza Deliveryman Busted by ICE while Making Delivery

(Mirror Daily, United States) – A pizza delivery man in New York City was arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers while he was making a delivery to a nearby military base.

Pablo Villavicencio, who was taken into custody Friday, is from Ecuador and has been residing in the United States illegally. The man was arrested at the gates of the Brooklyn-based Fort Hamilton after the guard asked for a valid ID.

Since he didn’t have one, the soldier called immigration to arrest him,

the man’s wife, Sandra Chica, told reporters.

The woman is from Colombia and has U.S. citizenship. The pair met five years ago, got married, and have two children. Villavicencio reportedly applied for residency status in February.

Chica complained that she and her daughters are living a “drama” as their life changed “from one moment to the next.” She urged authorities not to deport her husband.

A ‘Troubling’ Incident

Fort Hamilton confirmed that the delivery man arrived at the base around noon last Friday and lacked a “valid Department of Defense identification.” He was asked to take a daily pass from an office. The base’s personnel discovered that there was an active ICE warrant for the man and called authorities.

The New York City Council revealed that Villavicencio had made similar deliveries to the base, but a municipal ID was all that he was asked for. The Council described the incident as “troubling” and asked for more info from the base and the ICE.

A city official wondered whether the Army now wants proof of citizenship from all civilians that want to enter a military base. Is this a new deportation strategy? Local authorities believe that the Ecuadorian man was “singled out” and that NYC is not safer because one deliveryman was taken off the streets.

On Wednesday, ICE unveiled that an immigration court gave the man voluntary departure status in 2010, but he failed to depart as required.
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John Birks

John holds a diploma in journalism from the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University. He covers the technology, social media, green business, eco-travel, politics, arts culture.