Update on Denisse Parra Vargas and her Family
For Immediate Release: Thursday, May 8, 2025
Media contacts:
ILRC: media@ilrc.org
Grassroots Leadership: communications@grassrootsleadership.org
Texas Civil Rights Project: media@texascivilrightsproject.org
(Austin, Texas)—The situation involving Denisse Parra Vargas and her three children (ages 8, 5 and 4) continues to be very fluid. These are the latest details.
The Immigrant Legal Resource Center, Grassroots Leadership and Texas Civil Rights Project intend to hold a media call on Friday, May 9, 2025. Email communications@grassrootsleadership.org for more information.
A member of the Texas Here to Stay coalition informed the coalition that three DPS troopers and an unmarked vehicle had stopped a couple at the intersection of Rundberg and Teasdale, right outside Dobie Middle School on the morning of April 30th for a minor infraction believed to be concerning expired license plates. As a result of the traffic stop, Denisse and her partner were detained by ICE. Denisse was fitted with an ankle monitor and released that same day but her husband was taken into custody. ICE released Denisse to allow her to pick up her minor children from school.
On Friday, May 2nd, Denisse told an attorney she had been released by ICE and had reported to the ISAP office in San Antonio as she was instructed to do by ICE officials.
Denisse had been given a future date to report back later in the month and told that if she appeared at all of her future appointments (and all of the other conditions) she would be eligible for a work permit. She was also informed then that she should go to the ICE facility in Pflugerville on Tuesday, May 6, to attend a hearing/appointment for her partner. But her partner had no hearing and instead she and her minor children were detained, including two U.S. citizen children.
Later that day, the family’s legal and community advocates were informed that Denisse, along with her three children, were transferred to Laredo by private contractor. In fact, the family was not being moved to Laredo. On the morning of Wednesday, May 7, ICE deported Denisse and her three children—her two youngest children are U.S. citizens. During the 24-hour period from when the family was detained by ICE until they were deported to Reynosa, Mexico, attempts by community and legal advocates to determine what happened and their whereabouts were rejected. Advocates learned later that the family was held incommunicado outside of normal detention facilities before they were transported to Mexico.
ICE did not allow for communication with nearby family members who were willing to keep the children and instead detained them for 24 hours in secretive locations before deporting the U.S. citizen children to Mexico. ICE was informed by the family and legal advocates that the children were U.S. citizens and ICE knowingly deported them anyway in violation of their own policies and laws. ICE has no authority to detain or deport U.S. citizens regardless of the status of their parents.
There are no confirmed details about the whereabouts or welfare of her children, and neither the family nor the legal team have been able to get in touch. It remains unclear whether the children were separated from their mother or are in deportation proceedings.
Denisse entered the U.S. in 2016 seeking protection fearing further violence from her abusive former partner.
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