New York Governor Kathy Hochul has spoken out against the detention of a New York City Council staffer, Rafael Andres Rubio Bohorquez, who was arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). In her State of the State address, Hochul stated that analyzing data is not necessarily an egregious crime. "Are they really the baddest of the bad?" she questioned.
Hochul's comments were echoed by other city officials, including Speaker Julie Menin and Mayor Zohran Mamdani, who have called for Bohorquez's release. The staffer, an immigrant from Venezuela, was taken into custody despite having claimed to possess valid work authorization, backed up by documentation that cleared all background checks.
However, the Department of Homeland Security claims that Bohorquez had no such status and overstayed a tourist visa in 2017. This has raised questions about his immigration status and whether he is eligible for Temporary Protected Status (TPS), which he claims to have received.
Bohorquez's detention has sparked widespread condemnation from city officials, with more than two dozen council members and staff demanding his release. The situation highlights the complexities of immigration law and the consequences of mistaken assumptions.
Lawyers representing the New York Legal Assistance Group are working on a habeas petition for Bohorquez, while State Attorney General Letitia James has also called for his immediate release, stating that "attacks on our city, its public servants, and its residents will not be tolerated."
The staffer's family is now calling for his safe return to the community, as many New Yorkers are rallying behind him. As one union president noted, Bohorquez simply wants to make a living in the city he calls home.
Hochul's comments were echoed by other city officials, including Speaker Julie Menin and Mayor Zohran Mamdani, who have called for Bohorquez's release. The staffer, an immigrant from Venezuela, was taken into custody despite having claimed to possess valid work authorization, backed up by documentation that cleared all background checks.
However, the Department of Homeland Security claims that Bohorquez had no such status and overstayed a tourist visa in 2017. This has raised questions about his immigration status and whether he is eligible for Temporary Protected Status (TPS), which he claims to have received.
Bohorquez's detention has sparked widespread condemnation from city officials, with more than two dozen council members and staff demanding his release. The situation highlights the complexities of immigration law and the consequences of mistaken assumptions.
Lawyers representing the New York Legal Assistance Group are working on a habeas petition for Bohorquez, while State Attorney General Letitia James has also called for his immediate release, stating that "attacks on our city, its public servants, and its residents will not be tolerated."
The staffer's family is now calling for his safe return to the community, as many New Yorkers are rallying behind him. As one union president noted, Bohorquez simply wants to make a living in the city he calls home.
I'm really worried about Rafael Andres Rubio Bohorquez, this guy just wanna live his life and work hard like everyone else 
But ICE detention is just so unnecessary & unfair 
We gotta think before we act, analyzing data or not doesn't mean he's a threat to anyone 
His immigration status is all messed up but can't they give him a chance? 
Temporary Protected Status (TPS) sounds like something that could help him, but who knows what the paperwork says 
Anyway, I'm with the city officials & State Attorney General Letitia James on this one - we gotta stand up for our public servants & let Rafael go home safely 
The fact that his family's calling out for him is heartbreaking 
We need to create a better system where people like Rafael can just live their lives without fear of deportation 
, I'm still trying to wrap my head around this whole situation 
It's like, come on! Analyzing data isn't exactly a crime, right? 
And to make matters worse, he was even given valid work authorization and had all the checks cleared. What's going on here? 
. His family is counting on him, and it's just not fair that he's being held captive because of some bureaucratic mix-up. 
. Let's keep pushing for Rafael's safe return and make some noise about this! 
And what about all these lawyers working on his habeas petition? It's just so... slow. Can't we just get to the bottom of this already?
That's just rich coming from someone in her position. But seriously, it's refreshing to see them standing up for this young guy and demanding his release.
Hochul's comments just seem so out of whack considering all the info available. And what's up with the Department of Homeland Security claiming he overstayed his tourist visa back in 2017 when his own docs say otherwise? 
It's like, come on guys, make up your minds already! 
-ICE says Bohorquez overstayed his visa in 2017, but his own documents show he had work authorization & was supposed to have TPS... it's like they're playing immigration whack-a-mole 
Can you believe ICE thought they could just deport this dude and think no one would notice? I mean, come on, if Rafael's got valid docs, why didn't they check them properly?! It's like my grandma used to say, "If it looks good and smells good, it probably is!" 
Rafael deserves to be treated with dignity and respect, he's not some undocumented immigrant who can just be deported willy-nilly... we need to stand up for people like him and demand change in our immigration system