Queer woman with leukemia detained by ICE for over a year with deteriorating health
Apr 28, 2026·Location: Nogales, AZ

Arbella "Yari" Rodríguez Márquez, a 39-year-old queer woman and legal permanent resident with chronic lymphocytic leukemia since 2013, was detained by ICE on February 10, 2025, after being apprehended at the Nogales port of entry while returning from Mexico with her partner of over 13 years, Sonia Almaraz. Her legal residency was subsequently revoked by a federal immigration judge, and she was placed in removal proceedings at Eloy Detention Center. Over the course of her detention, her health has severely deteriorated: she has lost 70 pounds, developed additional conditions including rheumatoid arthritis, lymphedema, and anemia, and experiences hematemesis (vomiting blood daily), nosebleeds, bruising, extreme fatigue, and dehydration due to lack of adequate medical care—receiving only Tylenol for pain management. A parole request filed by her lawyer was denied on June 24, 2025. By April 2026, more than three dozen Arizona lawmakers, the LGBTQIA Legislative Caucus, and LGBTQ+ advocacy groups including Trans Queer Pueblo have called for her immediate humanitarian release, warning that her continued detention in a facility with a history of deaths amounts to a "death sentence" given her medical vulnerability.
Timeline
Sources
- Residente legal con leucemia lleva meses bajo custodia de ICE: denuncian que no recibe tratamiento
- After a month in ICE custody, this trans Phoenix organizer is fighting for a dying detainee
- lgbtqnation.com
- Immigration and Customs Enforcement Detains Queer Organizer
lookoutnews.org·Mar 28, 2026·archived copy
- Phoenix woman with leukemia getting sicker in ICE lockup, partner says
phoenixnewtimes.com·Jul 3, 2025·archived copy
- eu.timestelegram.com
- ‘She’s dying inside Eloy’: Community demands that ICE release Phoenix resident with leukemia
- Lawmakers Warn Eloy Detention Center Could Be a ‘Death Sentence’
lookoutnews.org·May 6, 2026·archived copy
- 'She is not doing good': ICE detains Phoenix woman with leukemia at Eloy Detention Center
abc15.com·Jul 4, 2025·archived copy
- Urgent Plea for Humanitarian Parole Issued for Leukemia Patient in ICE Custody - Davis Vanguard
davisvanguard.org·May 1, 2026·archived copy
- Phoenix community demands that woman with leukemia be released from ICE detention
- Release Cancer Victim Arbella "Yari" Rodriguez Marquez, Americans are Merciful
resist.bot·Sep 7, 2025·archived copy
- Free Yari! Stop ICE’s Injustice Against LGBTQ+ Migrants
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