FLUSHING, Queens (WABC) -- On the day before Thanksgiving, a Queens family is hoping federal immigration officials will show some holiday mercy.
Liany Guerrero and her 22-year-old twin daughters joined immigration advocates in Flushing Wednesday morning, issuing a public plea to Immigration and Customs Enforcement: Release their husband and father from the Bergen County jail so the family can celebrate Thanksgiving together.
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Last week, ICE agents detained 57-year-old Juan Villacis when he arrived for his annual check-in with authorities, who claim his immigrant visa is not current.
The family has lived and settled in Woodhaven since they left Colombia in 2001. Villacis and his wife own a home, pay taxes and financed their daughters' education at Baruch College.
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The licensed physical therapist assistant could be deported to his native Ecuador by the end of the year.
An ICE spokesperson told Eyewitness News investigators will examine the case.