Undocumented San Rafael Man Free On Bond

SAN RAFAEL, CA -- After more than six months in prison, a local father who was detained by immigration officials was released on bond. Hugo Mejia, an undocumented resident of San Rafael, will spend Thanksgiving with his three children and wife.

Mejia, a construction whose story made headlines across the nation, was detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement while working on the Travis Air Force Base. He was released Tuesday on a $15,000 bond as his case makes its way through court.

“I still can’t believe it,” Yadira Munguia, Mejia's wife, told Marin Independent Journal. “I’m not going to believe it until I see him in front of me. There wasn’t a day that he wasn’t on my mind. I think this is the first night I’ll be able to sleep peacefully.”

Mejia, whose detainment sparked an outcry across the region, including from elected officials, CBS San Francisco, he deserves an opportunity to stay in the country.

“Look at me, I’m a hard worker,” Mejia told the news station. “You think I am criminal? You see my face, you see my record — I am not a criminal."

--Photo via Pixabay