Aldrin Jose Delgado Piña (26) arrived in the US in 2023 in search of a better future for himself and his family according to his parents, Aldrín Delgado senior and Gisela Piña.

Aldrin lived in Laredo, Texas for about a year and two months until he was detained by Immigration. While he was in detention, he was told by ICE that they considered him a member of the notorious Venezuelan gang because of his tattoos. He has tattoos on his chest of his parents’ names with a crown, his cousin said.

Then in March, Aldrin called his parents to tell them that he had a deportation order to Venezuela. “He was crying. He was scared,” said Aldrin’s cousin. “He wasn’t a member of a gang, but they were saying he belonged Tren de Aragua.” He told his parents that he would be flying out on Saturday, March 15. His mom tried to calm him, telling him everything would be OK and he would be freed, according to his cousin.

He said the authorities at the deportation center ask if he would like to fight in front of a judge or accept deportation to Venezuela, and he agreed to deportation, according to his cousin.

When the family hadn’t heard from Aldrin on March 15, they looked for him in the videos of the men sent by the US to CECOT, the Salvadoran torture prison, and they recognized Aldrin. His parents described the mixture of emotions they felt, sad, dejected and worried, when they realized Aldrin was trapped in a notorious, foreign prison.

A community protest was held in the neighborhood in Zulia, Venezuela, where Aldrin grew up on March 18th. His family and whole community deny that Aldrin has any connection to the Tren de Aragua gang. "My son is not a criminal,” said the elder Aldrin about his namesake. “Here we are, son, standing up for you with the support of many people. If you ever see this, we love you, Aldrin José,” said his mother, Gisela.

(info from El Regional de Zulia, TikTok account of samuel00456)