SALISBURY, Md. - A Salisbury man is navigating two devastating blows to his family after Immigration and Customs Enforcement arrested his wife just days before their teenage son tragically passed away to cancer.
Arlit Maria Martinez, 41, was headed to work in Salisbury on Saturday, Jan. 3 when she was stopped and detained by ICE on Mt. Hermon Rd. A mother of four and the wife of Rigo Mendoza-Lopez, of Salisbury, Arlit’s family believes she was taken to an ICE facility in Baltimore.
“He never came back”
Arlit’s and Rigo’s son Kevin was diagnosed with cancer about four months ago, according to the family. Rigo said he then stopped working in order to dedicate his time caring for Kevin while Arlit continued to work.
“I told my wife, ‘I have to stop working because I have to take care of my son,’” Rigo recounted to WBOC.
“‘I know,’” Arlit replied, according to Rigo. “‘I’m working, you take care of him. We’re gonna do this.’”
A day before Arlit’s arrest, Rigo says they took Kevin to a Baltimore hospital where he said doctors were optimistic and that the teen was showing signs of improvement.
On Saturday, however, following the news of his mother’s arrest, Kevin “shut down,” according to Rigo, and “never came back.” The boy’s condition reportedly prevented him from being taken back to the doctors in Baltimore.
Rigo says Kevin lost his battle with cancer on Monday morning, Jan. 5, just before his sixteenth birthday.
Pleas for release
Arlit’s family pleaded with federal officers for her release to allow her to mourn Kevin’s loss and say her final goodbyes. Rigo says those requests went unanswered despite visits from attorneys and outreach from doctors.
“I don’t know why,” Rigo said. “She’s not a criminal.”
WBOC obtained Maryland court records for one Arlit Maria Martinez-Carrada regarding a traffic citation in 2015 in which she was charged with driving without a license in Wicomico County. No court records were located indicating any other criminal history in Maryland. ICE did not respond to WBOC’s inquiry as to whether they had any other record of charges.
Paola Subervi is a tax preparation professional and a local advocate for immigrants on Delmarva. When she heard about a possible ICE arrest on Mt. Hermon Road, she quickly located and contacted Rigo to see if she could help. She had never met Rigo or his family before.
Subervi says Arlit’s family brought a letter from Kevin’s doctors to the ICE facility in Salisbury directly after her arrest on Saturday.
“I think the letter stated the medical condition that the son had,” Subervi tells WBOC. “But immigration didn’t care.”
Subervi learned of Kevin’s passing on Monday and immediately called ICE in Salisbury and asked for a supervisor. She says she explained the situation to an officer, who reportedly said he’d see what he could do.
“I was like, ‘sir, if you tell me that you are going to release her, I will leave my office right this minute and I will go get her,’” Subervi recalls. “‘If you tell me that there is a bond, I will put up my house to bond her out. Tell me what we can do.’”
“‘If it was up to me, I would drive myself up to Baltimore and go get her,’” Subervi says the ICE officer responded. “‘I am a father, too.’”
As of Wednesday, Jan. 7, Arlit is still listed in ICE custody according to online records.
What comes next
Rigo says he and his family are in the middle of packing their things to leave the country to bury Kevin in his and Arlit’s home country of Mexico. The family had planned to move back to Mexico until they discovered Kevin was sick, Rigo says. They decided to stay when their son showed a positive response to treatment.
“We stayed until whenever he got better,” Rigo said. “Now it’s too late. Too late.”
Rigo says he will wait for his wife until the last minute.
WBOC reached out to ICE for further details on Arlit’s arrest. As of Wednesday, we have not heard back.
Kevin’s older brother Ervin started a GoFundMe to help his family stay afloat while they continue to press for the release of Arlit, as well as assist with funeral costs and legal fees.
