AP —
The father of a US Navy sailor who has been deployed in the Middle East for a record-breaking nine months was released from immigration detention, according to his family.
His arrest sparked intense backlash after The Associated Press reported that his son was entering his ninth month on the USS Abraham Lincoln with the Navy when his father was detained. The Lincoln is a vessel that set a US military record for uninterrupted time at sea and raised concerns about supply shortages and deteriorating mental health among soldiers.
Luis Manuel Aviles, 48, was arrested on Saturday after leaving his house to take his car to the mechanic, according to his wife, Argelia Aviles. She said her husband, a handyman in Key West, Florida, has a permit to work in the United States. Originally from Nicaragua, he has lived in the US for 19 years.
Aviles’ arrest was the latest in a string of high-profile immigration arrests of the immediate family members of enlisted US soldiers as part of President Donald Trump’s aggressive immigration crackdown. Elected officials recently launched a congressional investigation into the Department of Homeland Security practice.
