From Hope in the U.S. to Detention: Migrant with Humanitarian Parole Held in Guantanamo

Rodolfo Joel López Jarquín, a Nicaraguan national, found himself unexpectedly transferred to the U.S. Naval Base in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, in early April 2025, with plans for his deportation to Nicaragua. This situation developed despite his legal entry into the United States under the Humanitarian Parole program. According to El Confidencial, López Jarquín arrived in Miami on August 7, 2024, receiving a conditional stay for two years. Now, however, he is confined within the so-called "Migrant Operations Center" in Guantanamo.

In a message to his family, López Jarquín revealed that he spends 23 hours a day in confinement, with only five minutes of daily communication, under the watchful eyes of immigration agents. "I flew to Miami and was granted a two-year conditional permit. However, ICE detained me before my permit expired," the migrant stated in a declaration submitted to a federal judge in Washington. This document was certified by Marisol Domínguez Ruiz, an attorney with the ACLU's National Prison Project, which is spearheading a legal challenge against such detentions.

Legal Battle Against Guantanamo Deportations

López Jarquín, alongside another Nicaraguan, Johon Elias Suazo-Muller, is at the forefront of a legal battle seeking judicial intervention to halt the deportations of migrants to Guantanamo who, like them, have no criminal convictions or pose any public threat. López Jarquín claims he was misled into being taken to Guantanamo, believing he was being deported directly to Nicaragua.

From February 10 to early April, López Jarquín was held at the ICE detention center in Pine Prairie, Louisiana. On April 4, he was transferred to Alexandria with the assurance of deportation to Nicaragua, only to be flown to Guantanamo the following day. "It was shocking. We had no clue where we were headed until we landed and saw the military personnel. People were terrified. We thought we were going home," he recounted. "I have not been convicted of any crime in either the United States or Nicaragua," he added. López Jarquín was briefly detained by Louisiana police following a noise complaint but was not formally charged.

Conditions and Transfers from Guantanamo

In Guantanamo, López Jarquín reports that detainees were not informed of their right to legal representation. "They only inquired about any illnesses and then assigned us to rooms with six beds," he stated. By early April, approximately 400 migrants, primarily from Venezuela and Nicaragua, had been sent to the naval base. On April 3, a flight carrying 144 deportees, including 44 from Guantanamo, landed in Managua. Another flight's arrival was confirmed by Daniel Ortega's regime later that week.

Trump's Controversial Spending on Guantanamo Detention

The Trump administration reportedly spent $40 million in a single month to detain around 400 immigrants at Guantanamo Bay. Democratic Senator Jack Reed criticized this expenditure as an "extraordinary and unnecessary waste." Reed led a delegation of four other Democratic senators to visit the base in late March. Their joint statement condemned Guantanamo as a "likely illegal and illogical site for immigrant detention," sharply criticizing the use of military resources for immigration control.

Guantanamo's detention center faced scrutiny for failing to meet ICE standards, including inadequate air conditioning and basic electricity supply. In March, the U.S. government announced the removal of the last 40 migrants from Guantanamo and canceled plans to house up to 30,000 individuals in hastily erected tents on the base. Yet, López Jarquín's case underscores the continued detention of immigrants at the Naval Base.

Trump had asserted that these facilities would primarily house high-risk criminals, including members of the Venezuelan-origin Tren de Aragua gang. Nonetheless, officials did not rule out the detention of individuals without criminal backgrounds.

Surge in Deportations Under Trump

During the first 100 days of President Donald Trump's new term, ICE reported the deportation of 65,682 undocumented immigrants. Of those arrested, 75% had criminal records, including gang members from groups like MS-13 and Tren de Aragua. López Jarquín's family is demanding answers and legal assurances for him, as he remains detained under what they describe as inhumane and arbitrary conditions, with an uncertain future.