ICE Detains Honduras-Born Wife Of U.S. Army Veteran For Removal
Immigration and Customs Enforcement detained Honduran national Arelys Barahona Martinez at an immigration check-in in Dallas on Wednesday, June 10, 2026, and moved her to an Oklahoma facility to await removal under a 2005 final order.[1]
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services denied her parole-in-place application in November 2024 because of the outstanding 2005 order and told her to seek relief through ICE.[1] Attorney Mark Shmueli has filed a motion in a Texas court to block her deportation and to rescind the 2005 order, and ICE has indicated the case may be eligible for a stay.[1]
On November 2, 2005, Barahona Martinez received a final removal order after entering the United States without authorization earlier that year. She later left and then re-entered without authorization in 2018, after which she was placed on supervised release.
She married retired Staff Sergeant Wilmer Trujillo in 2020; he served nearly 20 years in the U.S. Army and the Texas National Guard, including two tours in Iraq. On April 10, 2025, ICE rescinded a directive that had treated military family status as a mitigating factor in enforcement decisions, a change critics say coincided with a rise in detentions of military spouses.
The mainstream summary does not address the broader context of ICE's actions under the second Trump administration, which has seen a significant increase in the targeting of veterans and their families for deportation. In the first year of this administration, ICE arrested 125 veterans and attempted to deport 282 veterans and family members, highlighting a troubling trend that goes beyond individual cases like that of Arelys Barahona Martinez.[2]
Furthermore, the summary overlooks the implications of the April 2025 policy change that removed military family status as a mitigating factor in deportation decisions. This shift has led to increased vulnerability for military families, as evidenced by the denial of Barahona Martinez's parole-in-place application and the broader rejection of protections that had previously been in place. The reversal of these policies reflects a significant departure from prior practices aimed at safeguarding those who serve in the military and their families.[3]
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📊 Relevant Data
In the first year of the second Trump administration, ICE arrested 125 veterans and attempted to deport 282 veterans and family members.
Warren Releases New DHS Data Revealing Trump Admin Targeting Veterans, Families for Deportation — U.S. Senate
Until April 2025, DHS policy considered veteran or military family status as a mitigating factor in deportation decisions; that policy was reversed, with the administration stating military service alone does not exempt aliens from immigration law consequences.
Military Families & Immigration Policy: Protecting Those Who Serve — Military Family Advisory Network
📌 Key Facts
- On Wednesday, June 10, 2026, ICE detained Honduran national Arelys Barahona Martinez at an immigration check-in in Dallas, Texas.
- ICE records show she was moved to a detention facility in Oklahoma to await removal under a November 2, 2005 final removal order.
- Barahona Martinez first crossed the U.S. border illegally in 2005, later left, and re-entered without authorization in 2018 before being placed on supervised release.
- She married retired Staff Sergeant Wilmer Trujillo in 2020; he served nearly 20 years in the U.S. Army and Texas National Guard, including two tours in Iraq.
- U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services denied her parole-in-place application in November 2024 because of the outstanding 2005 order and directed her to seek relief through ICE.
- Attorney Mark Shmueli has filed a motion in a Texas court to block her deportation and rescind the 2005 order, and ICE has indicated the case may be eligible for a stay.
📰 Source Timeline (1)
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