Queens student reunites with family after weeks in ICE detention center: 'Gives us hope'

QUEENS, N.Y. (PIX11) -- After more than five weeks in federal immigration detention, 19-year-old Derlis Snaider Chusin Toaquiza is finally home in Queens, and his reunion with his mother was nothing short of heart-wrenching.

Tears flowed at New York’s Port Authority Bus Terminal Friday afternoon as Derlis rushed into his mother’s arms following a grueling 38-hour Greyhound bus ride from a detention facility in Livingston, Texas. The trip home was made possible by a bond paid through the Envision Freedom Fund.

“I think that Derlis’ release gives us hope,” said Melissa Chua, Director of the Immigration Protection Unit at the New York Legal Assistance Group (NYLAG), “but it also reminds us that for every student like Derlis, there are thousands of people who remain unlawfully detained.”

Derlis, an 11th grader at Grover Cleveland High School in Ridgewood, was arrested on June 4 by ICE agents shortly after attending a scheduled asylum hearing in Manhattan. According to his legal team, Derlis was complying with the court process and had just received another hearing date when agents detained him at 26 Federal Plaza.

Lauren Reiff, Associate Director of NYLAG’s Immigration Protection Unit, emphasized that Derlis posed no threat.

“He has no criminal record. He’s an outstanding student. He was literally complying with his legal obligations at the moment he was detained,” Reiff said.

After his initial arrest, Derlis was transported to a facility in Texas, where attorneys say he endured harsh and overcrowded conditions. Food was scarce, there was little space to sleep, and the emotional toll was severe. His greatest fear, his attorneys say, was being deported to Ecuador and separated from his parents and two younger sisters.

Derlis and his family arrived in the U.S. in March 2024, seeking asylum and a safer life. Now, with his return, he’s focused on the things he missed most — playing soccer, swimming, and simply being a student again.

“Detentions like this — of the very people who are following the law — place immigrant families in impossible positions,” Chua added.

His legal team is now working to transfer his case from Texas back to New York, where they believe he stands a strong chance of being granted asylum.

For now, Derlis is home. And for his family, that’s everything.