When Luis Gilberto Loja Mayancela emerged from a friend’s car Friday and into his wife’s arms, it marked an emotional end to nearly four months in federal immigration detention.
The reunion had a twist of humor: A friend asked Mayancela’s wife to step outside to look at something in his car — and Mayancela popped out from the trunk, adding to the surprise.
Mayancela, 24, was released from the Moshannon Valley Processing Center on Friday after federal immigration officials declined to appeal a judge’s decision granting him bond. The decision allows him to await ongoing litigation over his deportation order while home with his family and 3-month-old son.
Mayancela’s release came after uncertainty earlier in the week, when the federal government initially indicated after his bond hearing that it planned to challenge the ruling. But his attorney said the government never filed the necessary paperwork for the appeal, setting the stage for his release on Friday.
“That could be a mistake — I doubt it, because they’re bloodthirsty — or it could be a decision not to do it,” Mayancela’s lawyer Joseph Murphy said Monday.
Mayancela was arrested Jan. 15 outside a Lowe’s in Monroeville while stopping for supplies on his way to work at a roofing company. He was in the U.S. under a Special Immigrant Juvenile (SIJ) status and has a valid work authorization.
Deferred action is U.S. immigration policy that uses discretion to postpone the deportation of certain noncitizens for a temporary, renewable period. Mayancela’s status has since been revoked.
Last month, Mayancela was issued a deportation order, which would require him to leave the country, but Murphy filed an appeal.
Murphy said he believes now that Mayancela is no longer detained at the Clearfield County center, there is more time for him to potentially earn a visa prior to his next deportation proceeding.
“He’s out, and when they’re out, when they’re not detained, the cases move at a much more leisurely pace because the government isn’t paying for their maintenance,” Murphy said.
Mayancela has lived in the U.S. under protective status for over three years. He fled Ecuador and entered the U.S. at age 17. In September 2022, he applied for and was approved for SIJ, a protective designation for immigrants under 21 who have been abused, abandoned or neglected by a parent and need juvenile court protection.
On Monday, Mayancela and his family friend and sponsor Ian James drove to the ICE South Side facility so he could get an electronic monitoring anklet.
Mayancela told TribLive through a translator that he was excited to start building his life back and to be home with his family. However, he said his heart hurt for the other parents who are still being held at Moshannon.