PORTLAND, Ore. — A Portland family is reeling after Orlando Vazquez, a longtime janitor and community member, was detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) last Thursday outside a hardware store in Northeast Portland.
According to his son, Vincent Vazquez, Orlando was at the store to buy a mop head before heading to work when four ICE vehicles surrounded him in the parking lot. Vincent said officers blocked his father’s car, ordered him out, and eventually broke his window before detaining him.
“He got trapped,” Vincent said. “They tried to scare him to get him out of his car, and eventually ended up cracking his window. They were lying to bystanders, saying my dad had warrants or was a criminal — but he’s not. He’s just a good guy who’s been working hard for his family for 25 years.”
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Witnesses reportedly questioned ICE agents at the scene, but officers did not provide clear information about the reason for the arrest. Orlando, who holds a valid work permit, was taken first to an ICE facility in Tacoma, Washington, and later transferred to a detention center in Texas.
Vincent said he was able to speak with his father briefly by phone. During their conversation, Orlando described the difficult conditions at the facility and said that roughly 40 people were being deported daily. The family now fears he could be sent back to Mexico, a country he hasn’t seen since leaving at 18 years old.
“He came here to provide for his parents, who have both passed away now,” Vincent said. “He never got to go back and see them. He’s worked his whole life here, never hurt anyone, and built a life for his family. Now they’ve just taken him like that.”
The family expressed deep frustration and heartbreak over the detention, saying it highlights how immigration enforcement can abruptly devastate households. “It just breaks apart families,” Vincent said. “Sometimes they take the number one person in your life — the one who supports you — and suddenly everything’s gone. All this does is just ruin families.”
ICE declined to comment on the specific details of Vazquez’s arrest but released a general statement through public affairs officer Chrissy Cuttita:
“While we cannot speak to this arrest, all ICE arrests are conducted in accordance with U.S. immigration law. Individuals found to be in violation of immigration law may be subject to arrest, detention, and removal. ICE officers prioritize public safety by locating and removing criminal offenders and immigration violators from our neighborhoods.”
Immigrant advocacy groups in Oregon have voiced growing concern about ICE operations in local communities, saying arrests at workplaces and public spaces have created fear among immigrant families and workers.
For the Vazquez family, the experience has been both personal and painful. Vincent said seeing similar detentions online never felt real until it happened to them. “You see videos on social media, and it’s scary,” he said. “But when it happens to your own family, you really understand the pain people are going through.”
The family is now seeking legal help and community support in hopes of preventing Orlando’s deportation and reuniting him with his loved ones.
