Keiber Alexander Esposito Martinez is a Venezuelan national, and came to America through a port of entry in June 2023 to seek asylum.
He was processed, put into the asylum process, and allowed access to the United States. Martinez was even granted the proper paperwork to get a job, and has worked at Casa Azul in Allentown for three years.
“I can’t say enough good things about Alex,” said owner Zina Lapi.
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Lapi says that Martinez quickly worked his way up the ranks in the kitchen.
“[He] started off as a dishwasher, worked his way up to being the next guy in charge,” Lapi said.
Martinez also married an American a little more than a year ago.
“Was doing all the right things and doing the right things diligently. He really was asking the right questions, making sure he had a lawyer the whole time. Was on the books the whole time here at Casa Azul. Never got in any trouble. He was, like I said, really excited toward getting his full citizenship.”
However on Monday, August 17, he was detained by ICE while driving a friend to their workplace. As it stands right now, Alex is being held at the detention center in Batavia. His lawyers don’t know why.
“There’s no official statement or any information that’s been provided,” Attorney Ryan Whitmer said.
During the entire immigration debate, much of the rhetoric has been centered on the idea that if people did things the right way, they wouldn’t be deported. According to Whitmer, Martinez was properly seeking asylum.
“Keiber actually did exactly what he was supposed to do, by the book,” Whitmer. “He didn’t have a visa to come to the United States, but he went to the legal entry point, explained what he was doing there, and he was allowed to come in and make his application.”
“Then, essentially, in the middle of that process, for no reason that I’m aware of other than just the government’s policy changes, they decided to go find him, arrest him, throw him in the immigration detention center, and now we’re having to essentially file a lawsuit in the federal court to try to get him released,” Whitmer continued.
Martinez’s attorneys were able to file the lawsuit quickly enough to prevent a transfer to another facility out of state, a tactic 2 On Your Side highlighted in a story earlier this year.
His detention, without a reason why, is sending shockwaves through Casa Azul and the Allentown community.
“It’s a sad day when someone comes in, gives it their all, loves the community, loves being here, loves his family, and then they’re just ripped from that in an instant,” Lipa said.
The restaurant will be hosting a fundraiser for Martinez on Sunday, September 6, between 2 p.m. and 5 p.m. to assist his family with legal expenses.
As for ICE, 2 On Your Side reached out to the agency for comment, but did not receive a response.
