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18-year-old left raising four siblings after Border Patrol detains Guatemalan parents in Florida

Aug 14, 2026·Location: FL

Country of origin: Guatemala

18-year-old left raising four siblings after Border Patrol detains Guatemalan parents in Florida
Photo via Instagram

Abraham Domingo and Maria Leiva, a Guatemalan couple who had lived in the U.S. for nearly 20 years, were pulled over and detained by Border Patrol agents on August 9, 2026, while driving with their five children near Greenacres/Lake Worth, Florida. Domingo worked as a plumber and electrician, while Leiva managed the household; agents said the family's car had a license plate flagged as belonging to a non-citizen. Their 18-year-old daughter Wendy, a U.S. citizen who had just turned 18 and was driving because her parents could not, was left in charge of her four younger siblings, ages 3 to 16. A video showing the children crying and hugging their parents goodbye circulated widely online. The parents are now held in separate detention facilities in Broward County, and an immigration judge has ordered Leiva deported. Wendy said she now plans to work two jobs to support her siblings instead of attending college classes she had been accepted into to study to become an ultrasound technician, saying, 'I never thought both my parents would get taken away at the same time, leaving me in charge of my four siblings.'

Timeline

Aug 14, 2026—Report confirmed parents held in separate Broward County detention facilities and an immigration judge ordered Leiva's deportation.
Aug 12, 2026—Video of the arrest and family's reaction circulated widely online; report detailed daughter Wendy's new role as caregiver.
Aug 9, 2026—Border Patrol agents stopped the Domingo family's minivan in Florida and detained both parents, Abraham Domingo and Maria Leiva.
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