Honduran student deported despite court order halting removal

By Merve Berker​​​​​​​

ANKARA (AA) – A 19-year-old college student was deported from the US to Honduras last week despite a federal court order temporarily blocking her removal, media reported on Wednesday.

Any Lucia Lopez Belloza, who entered the US at age 8, was detained last Friday at Boston Logan International Airport as she attempted to board a flight to Texas to visit her family for Thanksgiving break, according to ABC News.

“She thought she was going to go home, see her family, fly back, take her finals, and now she's sitting in Honduras,” the outlet quoted attorney Todd Pomerleau as saying.

Court documents show that a federal judge issued an emergency order just hours after her detention, instructing authorities not to deport Lopez Belloza or move her outside of Massachusetts.

Despite the order, Pomerleau said Lopez Belloza was transferred to Texas that evening and deported to Honduras the following day.

According to ABC News, a spokesperson for Immigration and Customs Enforcement confirmed Lopez Belloza’s removal and noted that she had a deportation order issued in 2015.

Pomerleau said he plans to take legal action to bring his client back to the US.