Abel O.: Chicago father detained six months after ICE mistakes him for his son
Abel Orozco, a 47-year-old tree-cutting business owner who has lived near Chicago for 30 years, was mistakenly detained for his son and has remained in custody in Kentucky for nearly six months.
Mar 14, 2025Lyons, ILCountry of origin: Mexico

Abel Orozco, a 47-year-old tree-cutting business owner who has lived in the Chicago suburbs for about 30 years, was arrested by ICE agents without a warrant on January 26 while driving home from picking up tamales for his family. Agents had entered his backyard and porch searching for his eldest son, who shares his name, and after forcing open his car and handcuffing him, realized roughly 45 minutes to an hour later they had the wrong person—but detained him anyway. Orozco has no criminal record, arrived in the U.S. in the late 1990s under a legal work petition, and was issued a removal order in 2004 after visiting his father in Mexico. He has remained in ICE custody in Kentucky for nearly six months, during which his family has missed mortgage payments, his younger son has struggled to keep the family business running, and his wife Yolanda, who has spoken publicly about the case, has been fighting breast cancer. His attorneys at the National Immigrant Justice Center, representing Orozco as one of 22 detainees, have filed a motion challenging the legality of warrantless ICE arrests and are seeking his release.
Timeline
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Sources
- Immigrant father in the U.S. for 30 years is challenging warrantless ICE arrests
NBC News·Jul 17, 2025
- Lyons father among 22 accusing ICE of arresting them illegally; son records encounter with agents
ABC7 Chicago·Mar 17, 2025·archived copy
- Immigrant Justice
- Lyons father arrested by ICE in immigration 'legal limbo' as case is continued
ABC7 Chicago·May 28, 2025·archived copy
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- Chicago father becomes face of lawsuit against ICE as judge hears challenge to warrantless arrests
Chicago Tribune·Jul 14, 2025·archived copy
Delco Times·Jul 15, 2025·archived copy
- SWOK News
- Herald-Review
- NewsNation Now
- Immigration agents arrested a U.S. citizen and created warrants after an arrest, lawyers say in court
WBEZ·Mar 13, 2025·archived copy
- No Warrant, No Warning: A Family’s Fight After an ICE Arrest
Southside Weekly·Apr 24, 2025·archived copy
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