Crime & Safety
Man Who Saved Girl From FL Shark Attack Detained By ICE, Faces Deportation: Reports
A man who rescued a girl from a Boca Grande shark attack is being held by ICE for not having a driver's license, reports said.
BOCA GRANDE, FL — A man who rescued a 9-year-old girl from a Boca Grande shark attack in which she nearly lost her hand earlier this month has been detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, according to multiple reports.
Construction worker Luis Alvarez, 31, was arrested for driving with no headlights and not having a valid driver’s license just before 2 a.m. on June 14, WTSP reported.
He showed officers a picture of his U.S. employment authorization card when asked for his license, reports said.
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Now, Alvarez is on hold for ICE in the Collier County Jail.
"If you do get arrested in Collier and you get an ICE hold, then 10 times out of 10 they're going to come pick you up," Efren Arocho, an immigration lawyer, told WINK.
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Another immigration attorney told Gulf Coast News that Alvarez shouldn’t have been detained.
"He is someone with a work permit that is legally authorized to work here in the United States, is told by police for driving without a license. I don't know why this person is being detained by ICE if he had a work permit, unless he has a criminal background," Ricardo Skerrett said.
Alvarez's arrest came just days after the June 11 shark attack on Gasparilla Island.
See Also:
- Girl, 9, Survives FL Shark Attack, Nearly Loses Hand To Bite
- FL Honors Student, 22, Detained By ICE, Faces Deportation To Mexico
- Gator Caught FL Woman In Death Roll: Update
Alvarez was one of three men to jump in the water to remove the shark from the girl’s hand and scare it off, reports said.
The girl, Leah, was able to walk to shore, where the men wrapped her injured hand in shirts.
She was flown by helicopter to a Tampa hospital, where surgeons were able to ultimately reattach her hand, which was mostly torn off at the wrist and bleeding, reports said.
“They had to get arteries from her leg to the hand. Got the blood flow back to her hand. Install pins in bones. Still has open tissues. They will be monitoring her here for a week. But thank God she can move her fingers,” her mom said.
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